The Aura: Grade A

A

The Aura (2005)

Ricardo Darin, others. Writer, Director: Fabien Bielinsky. (Spanish, subtitled).

This Argentine story is mostly a psychological thriller, very well written, acted, directed and photographed. A couple of taxidermist buddies decide to go hunting (how ironic is that?). They get separated, and the quiet, extremely introverted, epileptic one stumbles onto a plan for an armored car robbery, after which the hunting theme continues metaphorically. The good part of the story is how the main character insinuates his way into the plot without really knowing what’s going on. The bad part is 2 hours and 13 minutes of length. I was never bored, but the pace is far too slow for a typical American audience. Every scene served a story purpose, but there were too many themes overall. I enjoyed the complexity and the careful setup however. The ending was slightly unsatisfying, psychologically questionable, but artistically correct. Original and enjoyable.