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The Photographer: Murder in Pinamar
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Journalist killed for exposing corruption; violence.
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The Photographer: Murder in Pinamar
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What's the Story?
THE PHOTOGRAPHER: MURDER IN PINAMAR describes the 1997 murder of José Luis Cabezas, a news photographer on an investigative team looking into corruption at the highest levels in Argentina. The events take place only 14 years after Argentina's brutal seven-year military dictatorship was toppled in 1983, during which 30,000 so-called enemies of the regime were "disappeared." In that context, even in a democratic country, the Cabezas story seems part of a long, insistent narrative. After Cabezas stakes out Alfredo Yabrán, a secretive and powerful billionaire businessman connected to government and police officials, his photographs of the man appear in national publications. A multi-year investigation reveals that Yabrán directed a team of police officials and a motley street gang to carry out the cruel assassination. Journalists who investigated the crime, political rivals, government ministers, and lawyers recall the ins and outs of the investigation that led to the exposure of terrible misdeeds, a cover-up, convictions, a suicide, and a sense that justice still has not been rendered.
Is It Any Good?
This documentary is unlikely to interest most teens. At 106 minutes, The Photographer: Murder in Pinamar feels like a comprehensive and well-informed assembly of facts and relevant parties regarding this tale of real-life corruption in a country with a repressive and violent political past. (That history is well told in the film The Official Story.) In principle, teens may become better citizens from watching documentaries about the conflicts in foreign lands, but the execution of the film may not entrance young viewers. In its adherence to stodgy and predictable documentary reliables -- talking heads and less than pertinent visuals -- the true drama and import of this story feel diluted. Worse yet, once the corruption and conspiracy are made plain, there isn't much to keep an audience that isn't already steeped in Argentine politics rapt. In the end, this piece seems both important and dull at the same time.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how dogged journalists and investigators were in their search for the photographer's murderers. What do you think motivated their dedication?
Why do you think this murder captured the interest of the Argentine people?
What lessons do you think can be learned by other countries about the dangers to society of powerful people targeting journalists?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: May 19, 2022
- Director: Alejandro Hartmann
- Studio: Netflix
- Genre: Documentary
- Run time: 106 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: February 17, 2023
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