''The Truce'' ( es, La tregua) is a 1974 Argentine romantic

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

film directed by Sergio Renán and based on the 1960 novel of the same name by

Mario Benedetti Mario Orlando Hardy Hamlet Brenno Benedetti Farrugia (; 14 September 1920 – 17 May 2009), was an Uruguayan journalist, novelist, and poet and an integral member of the Generación del 45. Despite publishing more than 80 books and being publish ...

. It was the first Argentine film to be nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

(the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film). It was selected as the eighth greatest Argentine film of all time in a poll conducted by the

Museo del Cine Pablo Ducrós Hicken Museo del Cine Pablo Ducrós Hicken is a museum of cinema of Argentina located in Buenos Aires. It was established on 1971 and holds a collection of 65,000 reels of film. History The Cinema Museum of the City of Buenos Aires was created on O ...

in 1984, while it ranked 6th in the 2000 edition. In a new version of the survey organized in 2022 by the specialized magazines ''La vida util'', ''Taipei'' and ''La tierra quema'', presented at the

Mar del Plata International Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Mar del Plata) is an international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is the only competitive feature fes ...

, the film reached the 27 position.

Plot

The film opens on Martín Santomé's (

Héctor Alterio Héctor Benjamín Alterio Onorato (born 21 September 1929) is an Argentine theatre, film and television actor, well known both in Argentina and Spain. Biography Alterio's theatre debut came in 1948 as the lead in ''Cómo suicidarse en prima ...

) 49th birthday, a widower and the father of three children: the eldest, the embittered Esteban (

Luis Brandoni Adalberto Luis Brandoni (born 18 April 1940) is an Argentine actor and politician. Biography Brandoni was born in Dock Sud, a port community east of Avellaneda. He debuted on the stage in 1962, television in 1963, and on film in 1966. He joined ...

); the caring middle-child Blanca (

Marilina Ross Marilina Ross (born María Celina Parrondo, February 16, 1943, Liniers, Buenos Aires) is an Argentine singer and actress. She went into exile in Spain during the years of the military dictatorship (1976–1983), because this would not allow he ...

) and Jaime ( Oscar Martínez), a closeted homosexual. He goes to work thinking they have forgotten his birthday, and once at the office, he assigns two new employees to their jobs: the effeminate, nervous Santini ( Antonio Gasalla) and the young Laura ( Ana María Picchio), with whom he soon develops a bond. Back home, Martín is surprised with a party thrown by his children. After having a one-night stand with a woman he met on the bus (

Norma Aleandro Norma Aleandro (born 2 May 1936) is an Argentine actress. She is considered one of the most celebrated and prolific Argentine actresses of all time and is recognized as a cultural icon in her home country. Aleandro starred in the 1985 film '' T ...

), Martín starts going through a series of events that alter his life completely. Santini has a nervous breakdown at work and rants against the complacency of his co-workers; he is subsequently replaced, though the breakdown marks Martín and forces him to look at his own life. His son Jaime finally comes out and decides to leave home to save the family from embarrassment and further complications. Topping it all, Martín, who has befriended Laura, professes his love for her at a café and implores her to look beyond the age difference (he is 49, she is 24) and give him a chance. She accepts. The two start dating and Martín regains his wont of living. Their relationship never falters, and hints of infidelity are quickly dismissed. He moves into her apartment, forsaking his son and daughter (who starts dating a man herself). This upsets Esteban even more, who blames his father for giving him a mediocre life. Martín implores him that it is never late to change, and they reconcile. The film's climax begins with the untimely demise of Laura, who contracts

flu Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptom ...

and dies from heart failure shortly thereafter. Martín once again regains his bleak view of life and the world. He realizes that his romance with Laura was nothing but "a truce with life". The film ends on an ambiguous tone, as Esteban tries to comfort his father, roles inverted, and the camera centers on Martín, leaning against the wall, looking more hopeless than ever.

Cast

.... Martín Santomé *

.... Esteban Santomé * Ana María Picchio .... Laura Avellaneda *

.... Blanca Santomé * Oscar Martínez .... Jaime Santomé *

Cipe Lincovsky Cecilia "Cipe" Lincovsky (21 September 1929 – 31 August 2015) was an Argentine actress. She made her stage debut in 1953, and joined the Berliner Ensemble in 1960. Lincovsky spent much of her career overseas, including in Venezuela and France, ...

.... Laura's mother * Lautaro Murúa .... The Manager *

.... Woman on the bus * Sergio Renán ... Jaime's friend * Antonio Gasalla .... Santini * Luis Politti .... Vignale * Jorge Sassi .... Suárez

Background

Argentine actor Sergio Renán had been performing in films since 1951 under the direction of noted filmmakers

Mario Soffici Mario Soffici (14 May 1900 – 10 May 1977) was an Argentine film director, actor and screenwriter of the classic era. Biography A native of Florence, Soffici moved to Argentina in the 1920s and began acting in 1931 and directing in 1935 on the ...

, Lucas Demare and three times under

Leopoldo Torre Nilsson Leopoldo Torre Nilsson (5 May 1924 – 8 September 1978), also known as Leo Towers and as Babsy, was an Argentine film director, producer and screenwriter. Born as Leopoldo Torres Nilsson (he later changed his paternal surname from Torres to ...

. It was in his last collaboration with Torre Nilsson, in 1973, that he met fellow co-stars Héctor Alterio and Norma Aleandro. A year later he would cast them both in a starring role and a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

respectively in his film debut, ''La tregua''. A year after its release, ''La tregua'' was submitted to the Academy Awards (the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film) and won a nomination (the first Academy Award nomination in Argentine film history) but lost out to Federico Fellini's '' Amarcord''.Schwartz, ''Latin American Films, 1932 - 1994'', p. 249 The film has since gained cult status in Argentina. A Mexican remake was made in 2003.

Notes

References

* Schwartz, Ronald, ''Latin American Films, 1932 - 1994''. McFarland. Jefferson, North Carolina. 1997.

External links