Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Adolfo Bioy Casares' (1914-99) sci-fi novella
The Invention of Morel
(1940) not only
gave Alain Resnais the plot for his classic film
Last Year at Marienbad
, but also intro-
duced the idea of the holodeck decades before
Star Trek
existed.
The contemporary, post-boom generation of Argentine writers is more reality-based,
often reflecting the influence of popular culture and directly confronting the political
angles of 1970s authoritarian Argentina. One of the most famous post-boom Argentine
writers is Manuel Puig (1932-90, author of
Kiss of the Spider Woman
). In the Argentine
tradition, Puig did much of his writing in exile, fleeing Argentina during the Perón years
and ultimately settling in Mexico.
Osvaldo Soriano (1943-97), perhaps Argentina's most popular contemporary novelist,
wrote
A Funny Dirty Little War
(1986) and
Winter Quarters
(1989). Juan José Saer
(1937-2005) penned short stories and complex crime novels, while Rodrigo Fresán
(1963-), the youngster of the post-boom generation, wrote the international bestseller
The History of Argentina
(1991).
Gabriela Bejerman, a multimedia artist, released an album in 2007 that incorporated
some of her poetry with electro music. Other notable contemporary writers include Fede-
rico Andahazi, Ricardo Piglia, Tomás Eloy Martínez, Andrés Newman, Oliverio Coelho
and Pedro Mairal.
Metegol
(Foosball; 2013) is a 3D film directed by Juan José Campanella; it cost US$22
million, making it the most expensive Argentine movie ever produced.
Cinema
One of Argentina's major contributions to cinema is Luis Puenzo's
The Official Story
(1985), which deals with the Dirty War. Another well-known international movie is
Héctor Babenco's
Kiss of the Spider Woman
(1985), based on Argentine-born Manuel
Puig's novel. Both movies won Oscars.
New Argentine Cinema developed in the 1990s, brought about by economic and polit-
ical unrest. Films that spearheaded this movement include Martín Rejtman's
Rapado
(1992) and
Pizza, birra, faso
(Pizza, Beer, Cigarettes, 1998) by Adrián Caetano and
Bruno Stagnaro.
Pablo Trapero is one of Argentina's foremost filmmakers. Among his works are
award-winning
Mundo grúa
(Crane World, 1999), the ensemble road movie
Familia rod-
ante
(Rolling Family, 2004) and
Nacido y criado
(Born and Bred, 2006), a stark story
about a Patagonian man's fall from grace. His 2010 film noir played at Cannes Film
Festival, as did his most recent work,
Elefante blanco
(White Elephant, 2012).
