The Headless Woman (2008 film)

The Headless Woman
Theatrical release poster
Directed byLucrecia Martel
Written byLucrecia Martel
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyBárbara Álvarez
Edited byMiguel Schverdfinger
Music byRoberta Ainstein
Production
companies
  • Aquafilms
  • El Deseo
  • Slot Machine
  • Teodora Film
  • R&C Produzioni
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 21 May 2008 (2008-05-21) (Cannes)
  • 21 August 2008 (2008-08-21) (Argentina)
Running time
87 minutes
Countries
LanguageSpanish
Box office$100,177 (Argentina)[4]

The Headless Woman (Spanish: La mujer sin cabeza; also known as La mujer rubia, lit. 'The blond woman') is a 2008 Argentine psychological drama art film[5][6][7] written and directed by Lucrecia Martel. It competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival,[8] and opened nationwide on August 21, 2008.

The plot revolves around Verónica, who hits something while driving on a deserted road near Salta. Not being sure if she has hit a person or an animal, she drives off and becomes increasingly mentally disturbed

While The Headless Woman was mostly lauded by critics for its cinematography and social commentary, others were critical towards the film's slow pace and lack of clear narrative.[9][10] In 2016, the film was ranked No. 89th on BBC's list of the 100 greatest films of the 21st century.[11] In 2022, it was selected as the 24th greatest film of Argentine cinema in a poll organized in 2022 by the specialized magazines La vida útil, Taipei and La tierra quema, which was presented at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival.[12]

Plot

Verónica ("Vero"), a bourgeois Argentine woman, drives home from recreational swimming in rural Salta. Distracted by her cell phone, she looks down to answer it and hits something. Shocked, she collects herself and drives away; though she does not see it, a dog lies dead on the ground behind her.

Vero drives to the hospital where her brother works for a cut to her head and receives an x-ray. Before she can be further examined, she flees to a nearby hotel, the disturbing nature of her accident settling in. She calls her husband's cousin, Juan Manuel, who consoles her before the two have sex.

The next day, Vero returns home, where she lives with her husband Marcos and their Indigenous maids, still feeling deeply out of place and light-headed. She attempts to go to work at her dentistry office but her staff recommends she go home. Instead, she stops by her cousin Josefina's house, where she socialises with family, who notice the front of her car is severely damaged.

Vero visits a local recreation center, where she sees a boy on the ground, passed out from heat stroke. The image of the boy's lifeless body causes a panic attack, and she is consoled by a staff member, who offers her water and a hug. Later that day, Vero tells Marcos she believes she killed a person in a hit and run. Marcos takes her to the scene of the accident; they see something on the side of the road, which her husband insists is merely a dog. Marcos tells Juan Manuel, who works for the fire brigade, about Vero's concerns, but he claims there have been no claims of note.

Soon after, the body of a servant's child is recovered from a local canal nearby the location of Vero's accident. Josefina's daughter Candita, who has a crush on Vero, claims she wants to know more about "the boy who was murdered," but Vero insists the boy accidentally drowned. At home, Vero works with a new gardener to improve the look of the backyard.

Vero remains unconvinced that she only struck a dog, still disoriented and paranoid. To hopefully jog her memory of the fatal night, she revisits the hospital, but they claim there is no record of her admission let alone x-ray results, both scrubbed by her brother. At home, a young Indigenous boy bikes by and offers to wash her car; Vero gives him a simple chore and offers him food, clothing, and more work.

Vero is invited to a posh party at the hotel where she stayed after the accident. She learns they too have no record of her stay, scrubbed by Juan Manuel. Though still disturbed, she attends the party, smiling weakly and dazedly as people enjoy the evening around her.

Cast

  • María Onetto as Verónica
  • Claudia Cantero as Josefina
  • César Bordón as Marcos
  • Daniel Genoud as Juan Manuel
  • Guillermo Arengo as Marcelo
  • Inés Efron as Candita
  • Alicia Muxo as Prima Rosita
  • Pía Uribelarrea as Prima Tere
  • María Vaner as Tía Lala

Reception

Critical response

The Headless Woman garnered mostly positive reviews from film critics. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 75% approval rating based on 52 reviews, with a rating average of 6.89 out of 10. The site's consensus states: "Careful and slight, Lucretia Martel's Headless Woman doesn't fit neatly into a clear storyline, but supports itself with ethereal visuals."[13] At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 0–100 reviews from film critics, the film has a score of 81 based on 12 reviews, classified as a universally acclaimed film.[14]

Accolades

Award Date of ceremony[I] Category Recipients and nominees Outcome
ACE Awards[15] 17 April 2010 Best Director Lucrecia Martel Won
Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences Awards[16][17] 15 December 2008 Best Actress María Onetto Nominated
Best Art Direction María Eugenia Sueiro Nominated
Best Cinematography Bárbara Álvarez Nominated
Best Costume Design Julio Suárez Nominated
Best Director Lucrecia Martel Won
Best Editing Miguel Schverdfinger Nominated
Best Film The Headless Woman Won
Best Screenplay, Original Lucrecia Martel Won
Best Sound Guido Berenblum Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Claudia Cantero
María Vaner		 Nominated
Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards 10 August 2009 Best Actress María Onetto Won
Best Director Lucrecia Martel Nominated
Best Supporting Actress María Vaner Nominated
Cannes Film Festival[18] 25 May 2008 Palme d'Or Lucrecia Martel Nominated
Lima Latin American Film Festival[19] 15 August 2008 Critics Award The Headless Woman Won
Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival 9 October 2008 FIPRESCI Award Lucrecia Martel Won
VFCC Awards 11 January 2010 Best Foreign Language Film The Headless Woman Won

^[I] Each year is linked to the article about the awards held that year.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Calificaciones". INCAA (in Spanish). Comisión Asesora de Exhibiciones Cinematográficas. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Mujer Rubia, La". Catálogo de Cinespañol. Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  3. ↑ "La Mujer Sin Cabeza – La donna senza testa". Teodora Film (in Italian). 2008. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  4. ↑ "The Headless Woman (2009)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  5. ↑ Gilbey, Ryan (February 18, 2010). "The Headless Woman (12A)". New Statesman. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  6. ↑ Turner, Matthew (February 19, 2010). "The Headless Woman (12A)". View London. Archived from the original on March 9, 2010. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  7. ↑ Clifford, Laura (April 14, 2010). "The Headless Woman (La mujer sin cabeza)". Reeling Reviews. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Competition: "The Headless Woman" by Lucrecia Martel". Festival de Cannes. 2008-05-20. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
  9. ↑ Hunter, Allan (February 19, 2010). "The Headless Woman review and trailer". Daily Express. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  10. ↑ Maher, Kevin (February 19, 2010). "The Headless Woman". The Sunday Times. London. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
  11. ↑ "The 21st Century's 100 greatest films". BBC. 23 August 2016.
  12. ↑ "Top 100". Encuesta de Cine Argentino (in Spanish). Encuesta de cine argentino 2022. 11 November 2022. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  13. ↑ "La mujer sin cabeza (The Headless Woman)". Rotten Tomatoes. 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  14. ↑ "The Headless Woman". Metacritic. 2009. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  15. ↑ "Lucrecia Martel es la mejor directora de cine de 2009". Diario Uno (in Spanish). January 14, 2010. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  16. ↑ "Premio Sur - 2008 - Ganadores". Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences Awards (in Spanish). Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  17. ↑ "Premio Sur - 2008 - Nominaciones". Argentine Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences (in Spanish). Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  18. ↑ "Official Selection 2008". Cannes Film Festival. 2008. Archived from the original on September 17, 2011. Retrieved November 3, 2011.
  19. ↑ "Reina del Festival. Leonera, del argentino Pablo Trapero, triunfó en fiesta del cine". La República (in Spanish). 17 August 2008. Archived from the original on November 6, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2011.

Further reading

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