Lost Embrace (El Abrazo Partido) (2004)

83% of critics liked it
(47 reviews)
73% of users liked it
(1,042 ratings)

Argentinean filmmaker Daniel Burman writes and directs the ensemble film El Abrazo Partido (Lost Embrace), a follow-up to his 2000 feature Waiting for the Messiah. Daniel Hendler plays Ariel, a young man who lives in a Jewish working-class section of Buenos Aires. Since his father went missing in… More Argentinean filmmaker Daniel Burman writes and directs the ensemble film El Abrazo Partido (Lost Embrace), a follow-up to his 2000 feature Waiting for the Messiah. Daniel Hendler plays Ariel, a young man who lives in a Jewish working-class section of Buenos Aires. Since his father went missing in the war, his mother Sonia (Adriana Aizenberg) and brother Joseph (Sergio Boris) work in the shopping and business district. With no interest in school or work, Ariel hangs out and sleeps with Rita (Silvina Bosco). He finally gets the idea to move to Poland, so asks his grandmother (Rosita Londner), ex-girlfriend Estela (Melina Petriella), and Rabbi Benderson (Norman Erlich) for help. Meanwhile, a host of characters make up Ariel's multicultural neighborhood. Cesar Lerner provides the musical score. Lost Embrace won two Silver Bear awards at the Berlin Film Festival in 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 37 min.
Directed By: Daniel Burman
Written By: Marcelo Birmajer, Daniel Burman
Genres: Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

In Theaters: Feb 4, 2005 Limited
On DVD: Feb 14, 2006
Studio: New Yorker Films

Critic Reviews

Susan Walker, Toronto Star
As visually captivating as it is emotionally engaging.
David Gilmour, Globe and Mail
The film's sophistication -- and it is an immensely sophisticated film -- lies in its refusal to tuck in too tightly its shirttails.
Mario Tarradell, Dallas Morning News
Plays out in a low-key but charming fashion.
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News
Burman succeeds in involving us with the kind of characters who don't normally find their way to the big screen.
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post
A beautifully crafted film. Full of intriguing tracking shots, broken into vignettes introduced with lyrical titles, it has a willfully patient pace.
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe
Were it a book, it would go somewhere on the shelf with Jonathan Safran Foer and early Philip Roth. It also possesses traces of early Jean-Luc Godard and his wit with characters, as well as some of Wes Anderson's random silliness.
Anton Bitel, Film4
the film's leads say nothing about their characters that couldn't be gleaned from watching the film.
Anton Bitel, Film4
Affectionate, funny and ultimately moving, Burman's fourth feature embraces humanity in the Argentinean marketplace.
Rex Roberts, Film Journal International
Does what it sets out to do--celebrate the good nature of those people who, despite life's difficulties, remain true to their loved ones, their friends, and themselves.
Brian Gibson, Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada)
The film's moments of whimsy and its wry comic insights into one man's Prufrockian drifting and yearning through life add up to a charming oddity.
Dragan Antulov, Draxblog Movie Reviews
film that gives ultimate impression of missed opportunity
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone, TheMovieChicks.com
This is an amusing movie with a warm fuzzy ending that makes you feel like you just been hugged.
Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion
A small film whose structural weaknesses are largely redeemed by its big heart.

Read all 13 critic reviews

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Cast

            Daniel Hendler as Ariel

            Sergio Boris as Joseph

            Adriana Aizenberg as Sonia

            Jorge D'Elía as ElÃ­as

            Rosita Londner as Ariel's Grandmother

            Diego Korol as Mitelman

            Silvina Bosco as Rita

            Melina Petriella as Estela

            Isaac Fain as Osvaldo

            Atilio Pozzobon as Saligani Father

            Pablo Kim as Kim

            Catalina Cho as Ho Kim

            Juan Jose Flores Quispe as RamÃ³n

            Norman Erlich as Rabbi Benderson

            Adrian Fondari as Manukian Homeless Man

            Daniel Kargieman as Alfadi

            Juan Minujín as Lad in Bar

            Monica Cabrera as Saligani Mother

            Franco Tirri as Saligani Son

            Eduardo Wigutow as Moshe Levin

            Eloy Burman as Saligani Baby

            Luciana Dulitzky as Saligani Daughter

            Francisco Pinto as Gerardo

            Arnoldo Schmidt as Moshe Levin's Brother

            Fanny Lavintman as Mitelman's Secretary

            Salo Pasik as Marcos 'El Colorado'

            Gerardo Del Aguila as The Peruvian

            Wolfram Hecht as Polish Consul

            Eva Wylazlowska as Consul Secretary

            Luz María González Paredes as Adelaida

            Jorge Boigen as Uncle Jorge

            Sergio Kaplan as Rikudim Dancer

            Jaime Kantorovich as Rikudim Dancer

            Ariel Yohai as Rikudim Dancer

            Daniel Yohai as Rikudim Dancer

            Gabriel Stronguin as Rikudim Dancer

            Jorge Bromberg as Rikudim Dancer

            Mario Elenewaig as Rikudim Dancer

            Gladys Levingston as Rikudim Dancer

            Eva Tocker as Rikudim Dancer

            Elida Schmorak as Rikudim Dancer

            Susana Dolinko as Rikudim Dancer

            Olga Ostrovsky as Rikudim Dancer

            Sergio Segaloff as Rikudim Dancer

            Diana Szperling as Rikudim Dancer

            Alejandro Glimberg as Rikudim Dancer

            Fabio Mirchuk as Rikudim Dancer

            Monica Rubinstein as Rikudim Dancer

            Analia Sidlik as Rikudim Dancer

            Adriana Aizemberg
            
            Isaac Fajm
            
See full cast

Photos

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