Direction: Iciar Bollaín
Country: Spain
Based on the true story of Maixabel Lasa, this well-rounded political drama, which never moves into giddy thriller territory, stars Blanca Portillo as the title character. This is a woman who, eleven years after the assassination of her husband - the former civil governor of Guipúzcoa - decides to meet with two of the three men who killed him. They are Luis Carrasco (Urko Olazabal) and Ibon Etxezarreta (Luis Tosar), former ETA terrorists who now live miserably with guilt and remorse.
At its best, the film offers the clear-eyed objectivity of a healing program, while still establishing a moral outrage. It’s a tough topic tackled with open-hearted sincerity by director and co-writer Iciar Bollaín (Take My Eyes, 2003). Yet, the film shows some limitations in the insight offered about ETA. The very ordinary staging will not impress enthusiasts of sophisticated aesthetics or trendy techniques, but that’s not the director’s intention either. The more strangulated the plot gets, the more we lose adherence to a story that will appeal more to those interested in the recent Spanish history.
Maixabel is depicted as a woman with heart and courage, a true image of dialogue and reconciliation. “Everyone deserves a second chance”, she says. The healing is for both sides.
