The Argentine Academy of Film Arts and Sciences has announced this evening the selection of Sebastián Borensztein’s Heroic Losers / La odisea de los giles as the candidate from the South American country in the best international feature film competition at the 92nd edition of the Academy Awards.
Starring acclaimed actor Ricardo Darín and his sin Chino Darín, the film has been a box office hit in Argentina, and recently had its international premiere at the Toronto Film Festival followed by its European premiere this week at the San Sebastian Film Festival in Spain.
Set in Argentina in 2001, the heist dramedy follows a group of friends and neighbors pool together all of their savings to reactivate an agricultural cooperative and the economy of their small town. The day after they deposit the group's money in the bank, Argentina's banking system collapses, and they lose it all.
But they soon find out that they are not only victims of the country's crisis, they have been scammed by an unscrupulous lawyer and bank manager who were poised to take advantage of the situation. In a twist on the heist film, this small town group of everymen and women bands together and puts a plan into action to recover what’s rightfully theirs.
Argentina has received seven Academy Award nominations in the international category and has won twice, in 1985 with The Official Story and in 2009 with The Secret in Their Eyes.
