La antena

Esteban Sapir was a pioneer of the new Argentine film in the 1990s. His long expected second feature, La antena, is an inventive fairytale about the power of the human voice. Sapir uses the vital language of silent film for an enchanting allegory against the power of more of the same.

An impressive example of the vitality and the formal potential of silent cinema, the long-awaited second feature by Esteban Sapir is also welcome proof of the continuing attraction it has for contemporary film makers.

Inspired by the cinema of Murnau and Lang, of Eisenstein and Vertov, La antena is nevertheless a very modern film. Not only in the theme – monopolisation, consumerism, cultural dulling – is there talk of an update, also the form, the editing and the techniques used reveal that La antena is a film of our own time. The fairytale allegory continues to surprise from scene to scene with extensive, cleverly-made sets, beautiful use of words on screen and, not to forget, excellent acting.

In a wintry metropolis in the year xxx, the mercilessly bad Mr TV rules. The whole city is without a voice and he has monopolized word and image. People watch TV and eat the TV meals produced by Mr TV. Mr TV is working on a sinister plan with a dangerous hypnotic machine that operates through the TV to ensure that all life will be subjected to him forever. To achieve this, he kidnaps the only one who still has The Voice – a stunningly beautiful singer. An inventor witnesses the kidnapping and flees with his family to an old broadcasting mast in an attempt to thwart approaching doom. –Rotterdam