Review of Death and the Maiden

Studio............................Polygram Filmed Entertainment
Director..........................Roman Polanski
Executive Producers.............Sharon Harel and Jane Barclay
Director of Photography........Tonino Delli Colli
Production Designer..............Pierre Guffroy
Editor.............................Herve de Luze
Costume Designer................Milena Canonero
Music by..........................Wojciech Kilar
Co-Producers.....................Bonnie Timmermann and Ariel Dorfman
Production Supervisor............Suzanne Wiesenfeld
Based on the play by............Ariel Dorfman
Written by.......................Rafael Yglesias and Ariel Dorfman
Produced by......................Thom Mount and Josh Kramer

Paulina Lorca....................Sigourney Weaver
Gerardo Escobar................Stuart Wilson
Dr. Roberto Miranda...........Ben Kingsley

Story:

Paulina Lorca is a woman who was tortured by partisans of the dictatorial regime in the past. Now she leads a retired life together with her boyfriend Gerardo Escobar, a lawyer and human rights activist.

One night Gerardo gets a flat tyre and is aided by a certain Dr. Miranda who later also brings him home. Paulina thinks that he is the doctor who abused her for years. She takes the law into her own hands, threatens and abuses him. The tables are turned and it becomes a frightening night for Dr. Miranda. And what if he turns out to be guilty?

Birgitte S.C.´s opinion:

Death and the Maiden is one of the few movies that have made a huge impression on me. The knowledge that the movie is about Chili (although it isn´t mentioned anywhere) only makes it more realistic and genuinely dramatic. All actors are pulling off amazing performances, especially Ben Kingsley as Dr. Miranda. The tension is built up slowly right until the climax at the end of the movie. Wheter Dr. Miranda has done what Paulina accuses him of remains unknown until the end of the movie (and no, I´m not giving it away!), which keeps you on the edge of your seat and guessing who´s right until the last minute.

Death and the Maiden is a movie that grabs you by the throat (not literary of course) and is a definite must-see for everybody!