The Upcoming
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Cinema
      • Movie reviews
      • Film festivals
    • Food & Drinks
      • News & Features
      • Restaurant & bar reviews
      • Interviews & Recipes
    • Literature
    • Music
      • Live music
    • Theatre
    • Shows & On demand
  • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
  • What’s On
    • Art exhibitions
    • Theatre shows
  • Tickets
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
  • Special events
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

CultureCinemaMovie reviews

El Clan (The Clan)

El Clan (The Clan) | Movie review
12 September 2016
Michelle Keepence
Avatar
Michelle Keepence
12 September 2016

Movie and show review

Michelle Keepence

El Clan (The Clan)

★★★★★

Release date

16th September 2016

Links

Twitter

Rewind to 1980s Argentina: the country is in turmoil following its bitter defeat during the Falklands War and the crumbling of the Galtieri military dictatorship. This is a time when decent 9-to-5 jobs are hard to come by – a problem faced by Arquímedes Puccio (Guillermo Francella), an upstanding family man living in a wealthy area of Buenos Aires, who lost his job at the state’s intelligence service. His solution? To enter into the business of kidnapping, taking members of well-off families hostage and demanding hefty ransoms for their release. Two of Puccio’s sons become directly involved in the plots, whilst his wife, third son and two daughters are unable to ignore what’s going on, given that the hostages are often chained up in the bath or basement of their home. 

Believe it or not, this story is true and is authentically told by Argentinian director Pablo Trapero in El Clan. Backed by a cult Hollywood soundtrack and some edgy montage sequences, Trapero takes no prisoners in his cold representation of Puccio and the intriguing banality in which he commits his most violent of crimes. Francella, with a pair of piercing blue eyes that evoke terror whilst oozing indifference, creates a stark contrast to the warm features of his son Alejandro (Peter Lanzani). The tense relationship between the two is a fascinating central element to the narrative, which leaves us struggling to decide if the son is a likeable character or if he actually has the potential to be just as brutal as his father. 

Despite the horrific reality of the events that take place, the film is darkly comedic, highlighting just how ridiculous the family’s situation has become. Laughter, however tentative, provides a welcome release to the sense of unease that builds throughout and, as the family’s dauntless scheming comes to an end, the audience exhales a breath it didn’t quite realise it had been holding. 

Watch with utter captivation as the shocking crimes of a ruthless murdering kidnapper and his clan become nothing but an everyday humdrum routine. Boasting wins at the Venice Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival following its release last year, this is not one to be missed.

★★★★★

Michelle Keepence 

El Clan (The Clan) is released in selected cinemas on 16th September 2016. 

Watch the trailer for El Clan (The Clan) here:

Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.

YouTube privacy policy

If you accept this notice, your choice will be saved and the page will refresh.

Related Itemsreview

More in Movie reviews

Imperial Blue

★★★★★
Guy Lambert
Read More

MLK/FBI

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

Sing Me a Song

★★★★★
Abbie Grundy
Read More

A Night of Horror: Nightmare Radio

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

Wonder Woman 1984

★★★★★
Jake Cudsi
Read More

Come Away

★★★★★
Sylvia Unerman
Read More

Murder Me, Monster

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More

David Byrne’s American Utopia

★★★★★
Rosamund Kelby
Read More

Dreamland

★★★★★
Guy Lambert
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Movie and show review

Michelle Keepence

El Clan (The Clan)

★★★★★

Release date

16th September 2016

Links

Twitter

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Female filmmakers lead nominees for the London Critics’ Circle Film Awards
    Cinema
  • An interview with Ifrah Ismael: Tales from the Front Line and other stories
    Theatre
  • The Queen’s Gambit: A chess story that’s not about the moves but the motives
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Sleaford Mods – Spare Ribs
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Jeremiah Fraites: Piano Piano
    ★★★★★
    Album review
  • Win a copy of Link on Blu-ray
    Competitions
  • Unlimited Festival at the Southbank Centre: Centre stage for diversity
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • RSC Next Generation: Young Bloods proves Shakespeare is timeless
    Theatre
  • The White Tiger
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • The different types of Covid testing explained
    Tech & Sport
  • WandaVision: Marvel’s charming sitcom proves an astounding success
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • The Queen’s Gambit: A chess story that’s not about the moves but the motives
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
  • Undercover at Morpheus Show Online
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Ten short literary collections to get you back into reading
    Literature
  • Mayor
    ★★★★★
    Cinema
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

The Brother | Movie review
Anarchy! The McLaren Westwood Gang | Movie review