By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.7 cats
Director: Benjamín Naishtat
Starring: Esteban Bigliardi | Esteban Lamothe | Joaquin Bonadeo | Lali Espósito | Marcelo Subiotto
Year: 2026
Running time: 106
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt38494637
Val says: “A stunning combination of film noir and the graduate, set in a the political unrest of 50’s Argentina. In a small town south of the capital, a man returns from prison and we are launched into a time-hopping journey of betrayal. I loved how this film unfolded, and the performances were extraordinary. I was just as captivated by Lali Espósito as the four teenaged friends were when they watched her dance. I would not have guessed this was newcomer Joaquin Bonadeo’s first time on camera – as the teenaged Miguelito who ties himself into knots he can’t untangle, he felt very natural and in-command of the frame. My one critique is that the lighting felt like an afterthought – some really great ideas that fell short in execution. But it’s an incredibly stylish, watchable film that delivers on the sense of place and time, and ends on a scene that surprised me with its emotion. 4 cats”
Chris says: “I began this year’s TIFF with not one but two literary adaptations, the second of which was of Hernán Ronsino’s 2009 novel about four young men in a backwater Argentine town not long after the Juan Peron-disposing military coup. Beginning and ending in 1984 (with a few sly nods to then-contemporary film The Terminator), the bulk is centered in the late 1950s where Miguelito (Joaquin Bonadeo) stumbles upon a mentor in Ramon, a retired policeman (Marco Subiotto) new to a town whose chief industry is the pharmaceutical company of the title. His glamorous young wife, the wonderfully named La Negra Miranda (Lali Espósito) is the envy of Miguelito and his friends as she often pops up at their youth dances looking for a partner to share the floor with (and occasionally much more.) Miguelito is blissfully unaware of Ramon’s past involvement in the coup, so it does not bode well for the former when he forges a friendship with Miranda (and soon, much more.)
“Director Benjamín Naishtat transfers the narrative successfully from page to screen, holding one’s attention as the story gradually clicks into place across time periods (visually delineated by their own aspect ratios) and gets good-to-nearly-great work from his ensemble (especially Bonadeo, who hadn’t acted before and Esteban Bigliardi as the older version of Miguelito’s friend Flaco.) Still, given Esposito’s flair of a presence, I was anticipating something wilder and more florid like Almodovar who would’ve really had fun with (and queered up) this material. As is, however, Glaxo resonates as a period piece, a betrayal fable and possibly a Mormon revenge fantasy. 3.5 cats”
Beth Cu says: “Set in Argentina in the 50s and 70s, the film jumped between the two timelines telling the story of a group of 4 friends and a betrayal among them. Like Clarissa there was double casting for the roles, and it was even better done, you knew exactly who was who. Crazy good casting! This was another one that had great production design and costuming, and also great lighting/tone choices between the two eras to make the contrast stand out even more. Plotwise however, it was a little heavy-handed and telegraphed – at times it veered into melodrama, the 50s storyline in particular. 3.5 cats.”