When a billionaire entrepreneur impulsively decides to create an iconic movie, he demands the best. Renowned filmmaker Lola Cuevas (Penélope Cruz) is recruited to mastermind this ambitious endeavor. Completing the all-star team are two actors with massive talent but even bigger egos: Hollywood heartthrob Félix Rivero (Antonio Banderas) and radical theatre actor Iván Torres (Oscar Martínez). Both are legends, but not exactly best friends. Through a series of increasingly eccentric trials set by Lola, Félix and Iván must confront not only each other, but also their own legacies. Largely a chamber piece, the film provides its central trio with ample opportunity for both vulnerability and scenery-chewing. Martinez deftly reveals the childish wounds underlying Iván’s high ideals, while Banderas utilizes his star power to craft a portrait of a man consumed by his own celebrity. But it’s Cruz, sporting a magnificent cloud of ginger curls, who becomes the film’s anchor as a master manipulator looking on as her grand scheme spirals out of control.
“Wondering just how far this film will go is half the fun, and directors Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat choose their moments to push the tone from sharp observational comedy into absurdity…” —Anna Smith, Deadline Hollywood “Argentinian directors Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn keep the laughs coming, the pace brisk and the tone jocular, resulting in a fluffy but not altogether unserious exploration of the craft of acting.” —Boyd van Hoeij, The Film Verdict
