Saturday, March 14, 1:00pm
Charlotte Center City Amphitheater
Un Cuento Chino / Chinese Take-Away
Director Sebastián Borensztein
Argentina, Spain, 2012, 98 min
In Spanish with English subtitles
Introduction by TBA. Discussion will follow screening.
Argentina’s national treasure, Ricardo Darín, is best known for his intense dramatic performances in films such as Nine Queens, The Aura, and the Oscar-winning The Secret in Their Eyes, but his brilliant comic timing in this instant classic helped make Chinese Take-Away the biggest home-grown box office success of 2011 in Argentina. Darín plays Roberto, a gruff, anti-social loner who lords over his tiny hardware shop in Buenos Aires with a meticulous sense of control and routine, barely allowing for the slightest of customer foibles. After a chance encounter with Jun, a Chinese man who has arrived in Argentina looking for his only living relative, Roberto takes him in. Their unusual cohabitation helps Roberto bring an end to his loneliness, but not without revealing to the impassive Jun that destiny’s intersections are many and can even explain the film´s surreal opening sequence: a brindled cow falling from the sky.
Reviews:
NY Times Critics’ Pick! “Unfolding in simple yet wonderfully expressive hand-drawn frames, the film’s unsparingly observant plot depicts the slide into senility with empathy and imagination.” Jeannette Catsoulis, The New York Times
“Gold-plated performance by the reliable Ricardo Darín.” – Jonathan Holland, Variety
“Chinese Take Away is one of those movies that you can enjoy repeatedly discovering new shades beyond black humor, such as friendship, love, or loneliness.” – Vivelo Hoy
“Warm, amusing, and delightfully structured…a feel-good movie.” – Mark Adams, Screen Daily
“A genuinely touching story that, with its themes of cultural conflict and language barriers, should resonate deeply with audiences.” – Ciara LaVelle, Miami New Times
Social Media Links:
Un Cuento Chino on YouTube
Un Cuento Chino on Facebook
