The Chilean Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Maite Alberdi (“The Mole Agent,” in which she went undercover to document the improprieties in a care home for senior citizens) focuses her camera on one of Chile’s power couples: Paulina Urrita, a noted actress and former Minister for Culture and her partner of twenty-three years (married for three), the culture journalist Augusto Góngora.
In the film’s opening scene, Augusto is awoken by Paulina. He is in their bed, bedroom, house, next to a woman he has known for most of his life but does not recognize. Augusto has dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. Although he reacts to this “new” news with astonishment and laughter, as the film proceeds, we see the anger and frustration creep out from beneath the shield of Augusto’s naturally optimistic personality. As for Paulina, she appears unfazed by all this, making it her daily mission to jog any memories in Augosto’s brain about what they shared in their life together. Her optimism carries over to the audience – a film whose subject matter is inherently depressing is unexpectedly uplifting. The only time you see the sadness and pain in Paulina’s eyes is when she tells her husband that he has spent an entire morning walking around the house without recognizing her.
Filmed during the COVID lockdown, the circumstances under which the movie was made must not have been easy on the couple. In fact, for many weeks of filming, Paulina was behind the scenes, the strict rules on social gatherings preventing Alberdi from being on site.
Augusto Gongora passed away on May 19, 2023, at age 71, not long after the film won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize (Documentary Competition) at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
NYFCC Award for Best Supporting Actress.
In the fifty-four years since Dyan Cannon won the first won Best Supporting Actress in NY in 1969, fourteen of their choices have failed to get a nomination.
