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Being in prison is probably not an easy feat. You lose your freedom, your family, your individuality, and in many cases, your life. I can only assume that it's even harder when the reasons that take you to jail are not necessarily because you committed a crime, but because you were fighting for what you thought was right at one point. How much would you fight to regain your freedom?
Pacto de Fuga is set in the late 1980s during the rule of dictator Augusto Pinochet in Chile. When a group of members of a rebel group make a failed attempt against the leader, they all end up in prison and some of them in death row. As a result, they staged a daring escape against all odds.
The film focuses primarily on two prisoners: León Vargas (Benjamín Vicuña) and Rafael Jiménez (Roberto Farías), both of which are reeling in from different types of loss in the aftermath of the attempt. There are a handful of other prisoners that are given certain prominence, but the film does a decent job handling all, but keeping the focus on the planning of the jailbreak.
Albala's direction is pretty good, with some nice camera handling and neat tricks. The performances are spotty and the script obviously tries to create some drama, not always succeeding. Some of the performances of the main antagonists, especially the district attorney that is determined to keep the people in jail is very over the top and hammy, but in some ways it works.
The film is also plagued by numerous "prison movie" clichés. Still, despite some flaws, Albala succeeds in creating tension through several setpieces, and making us care about the lead characters. Pacto de Fuga might not be an innovative film, but it's still a competently crafted one that sheds light on a noteworthy event in the history of Chile.
Grade:
PACTO DE FUGA
(2020, Albala)
A film from Chile
(2020, Albala)
A film from Chile
"Will you truly feel free when you're out?"
Being in prison is probably not an easy feat. You lose your freedom, your family, your individuality, and in many cases, your life. I can only assume that it's even harder when the reasons that take you to jail are not necessarily because you committed a crime, but because you were fighting for what you thought was right at one point. How much would you fight to regain your freedom?
Pacto de Fuga is set in the late 1980s during the rule of dictator Augusto Pinochet in Chile. When a group of members of a rebel group make a failed attempt against the leader, they all end up in prison and some of them in death row. As a result, they staged a daring escape against all odds.
The film focuses primarily on two prisoners: León Vargas (Benjamín Vicuña) and Rafael Jiménez (Roberto Farías), both of which are reeling in from different types of loss in the aftermath of the attempt. There are a handful of other prisoners that are given certain prominence, but the film does a decent job handling all, but keeping the focus on the planning of the jailbreak.
Albala's direction is pretty good, with some nice camera handling and neat tricks. The performances are spotty and the script obviously tries to create some drama, not always succeeding. Some of the performances of the main antagonists, especially the district attorney that is determined to keep the people in jail is very over the top and hammy, but in some ways it works.
The film is also plagued by numerous "prison movie" clichés. Still, despite some flaws, Albala succeeds in creating tension through several setpieces, and making us care about the lead characters. Pacto de Fuga might not be an innovative film, but it's still a competently crafted one that sheds light on a noteworthy event in the history of Chile.
Grade: