Rojo (2019)
70%RT Audience Score: 42%
Awards & Nominations: NA
A pitch-black thriller with uncommon wit and sophistication, Rojo tells a story as rich and evocative as the deepest shade of its title color
Rojo is a film that will make you feel uncomfortable laughing, but that’s what makes it so funny. The performance by Dario Grandinetti as Claudio is both menacing and bureaucratic, reminding us that even repulsive characters can be fascinating. The film’s scenes are dislocated and highlight absurdity and violence, but it’s the sharp edge and satire that keep us on the edge of our seats. Set in Argentina before the military coup of 1976, Rojo is a damning political satire thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end. So, embrace this little masterpiece before it disappears!
Production Company(ies)
Distributor
Distrib Films
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
TV-MA
Year of Release
2019
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:1h 49m
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Language(s):
-
Country of origin:Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 12, 2019 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 8, 2019
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Rojo, drama, Spanish, 1970s, lawyer, private detective, Argentina, pitch-black thriller, uncommon wit, sophistication, rich, evocative, deep shade, Alfredo Castro, Sinclair, Diego Cremonesi, Dieguito, Rafael Federman, Santiago, Andrea Frigerio, Susana, Darío Grandinetti, Claudio, Raymond E Lee, American Cowboy, directed by Benjamín Naishtat, written by Benjamín Naishtat, produced by Emmanuel Chaumet, Federico Eibuszyc, Barbara Sarasola-Day, Marleen Slot, Ingmar Trost, Dan Wechsler, Jamal Zeinal Zade, Rachel Daisy Ellis, reviewed by Amy Nicholson, Ela Bittencourt, Wendy Ide, Kevin Maher, Charlotte O’Sullivan, Mark Kermode, Joanne Laurier, Joseph Pomp, Jeff Mitchell, Louis Proyect, Dennis Schwartz, Blai Morell, genre, box office performance, budget, MPAA rating, drama, thriller, mystery, crime, limited release, Distrib Films
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Diego Cremonesi – Dieguito
Rafael Federman – Santiago
Andrea Frigerio – Susana
Darío Grandinetti – Claudio
Raymond E. Lee – American Cowboy
Director(s)
Benjamín Naishtat
Writer(s)
Benjamín Naishtat
Producer(s)
Emmanuel Chaumet, Federico Eibuszyc, Barbara Sarasola-Day, Marleen Slot, Ingmar Trost, Dan Wechsler, Jamal Zeinal Zade, Rachel Daisy Ellis
Film Festivals
Toronto
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (53) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (51) | Rotten (2)
Deadpan [and] very funny even though you feel uncomfortable laughing.
October 2, 2019
Amy Nicholson
FilmWeek (KPCC – NPR Los Angeles)
TOP CRITIC
Dario Grandinetti’s riveting performance as the vaguely menacing yet bureaucratic Claudio is a reminder that repulsive or unfathomable characters can be as fascinating as likable ones.
September 26, 2019
Ela Bittencourt
Hyperallergic
TOP CRITIC
The film does not serve up its ideas in easily digestible bites. The audience needs to work with a dislocated string of scenes that sometimes highlight absurdity, sometimes violence and frequently say very little at all.
September 7, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Wendy Ide
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
It’s powerful material, deftly delivered.
September 7, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Kevin Maher
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Embrace this little masterpiece before it disappears.
September 6, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Charlotte O’Sullivan
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
A film in which there’s a sharp edge, and the satire and humor don’t do anything to take that sharpness off.
September 6, 2019
Mark Kermode
Kermode & Mayo’s Film Review
TOP CRITIC
The movie’s eerie, ominous atmosphere is legitimate, but can’t substitute itself for historical concreteness.
August 6, 2020
Joanne Laurier
World Socialist Web Site
Rojo pulsates both with the motif of blood and the subtly indelible image of a solar eclipse, when an orb blots out the sun, obscuring all but its deep red edges.
February 26, 2020
Joseph Pomp
Hyperallergic
Director Benjamin Naishtat throws us into a tizzy and then keeps us guessing, when he will lower the cinematic boom.
November 18, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/4
Jeff Mitchell
Art House Film Wire
Set in Argentina a year before the military coup of 1976 that turned the country into a torture chamber, it is a searing portrait of the middle-class complacency that relied on.
November 16, 2019
Louis Proyect
Counterpunch.org
A damning political satire thriller set in 1975 Argentina before the coup of the military junta.
November 15, 2019 | Rating: B+
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
Surviving the initial two scenes of this disturbing and excellent movie is no easy task. [Full Review in Spanish]
November 13, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Blai Morell
Fotogramas…
Plot
In 1970s Argentina, a successful lawyer’s life begins to unravel when a private detective arrives in town and starts asking tough questions, leading to a pitch-black thriller with uncommon wit and sophistication in Rojo.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Dario Grandinetti’s performance as Claudio is described as “vaguely menacing yet bureaucratic.”
Benjamín-Naishtat.jpg
