Carancho

Director of 2008’s Lion’s Den, one of Argentina’s most skilled filmmakers returns with a story drawn from the alarming violence on his country’s streets. Each year, more than eight thousand people are killed on the road and over a hundred thousand are injured. As a result, a A disturbingly large part of the Argentine economy revolves around traffic accidents, and a profit stands to be made from the ongoing flow of . Each year, more than eight thousand people are killed on the road and over a hundred thousand are injured. Apart from medical expenses and , a huge amount of money is generated by insurance company claims. Trapero’s sixth feature plunges into this murky world of opportunism, spotlighting the crooks that swoop in on emergency rooms and accident scenes.

Legal vultures swarm hospital waiting rooms and accident scenes, hoping to represent the victims and their families. Pablo Trapero’s sixth feature, Carancho, immerses us in this murky world.

Sosa (Ricardo Darin) works for a so-called foundation (really a dodgy law firm) that helps traffic victims make insurance claims but keeps the lion’s share of the settlements. On the job, Sosa meets Lujan (Martina Gusman), a young doctor trying to chalk up hours working round the clock as an ambulance medic and an emergency room attendant. Tired and sickened by his work, Sosa is eager to attain his license to practice law. His relationship with Lujan seems to signal a brighter future.

Filmed as a classic noir, Carancho is steeped in a dark and sombre atmosphericse. Trapero depicts an intense world of car crashes, drug addiction, emergency rooms and violence. Sosa is a complex character caught in a moral quagmire, while Lujan keeps her own dark secrets. Sosa wants to make a break with his past and do the right thing with Lujan’s help, but the walls of corruption – reinforced by the doctors, lawyers and policemen who serve to protect a system – present a seemingly insurmountable barrier.

Trapero has built an impressive filmography since his 1999 debut, Crane World, heralded a new generation of Argentinean filmmakers. He has a facility for crossing genres and themes, as well as an exceptional eye and a mastery of his craft. Visceral and packed with complicated moral questions, Carancho is an engrossing love story set in a world peopled by among people who trade in sudden tragedy and death. –TIFF.net