Forget sex. Broad-range “happiness” is what really sells. And if you beg to differ, then “No” should be next on your must-see list.
Disguised as a rollicking cinematic journey that entertains at every turn, the Chilean Oscar Nominee for Best Foreign Language Film amounts to a powerful strain of dialogue between its unsuspecting viewers and themselves — unearthing their deepest motivations in the process.
“No” follows Rene Saavedra (Gael Garcia Bernal), a real-life ad executive who was tasked with leading a political campaign against Augusto Pinochet in Chile’s 1988 referendum. Bearing only his experience in selling microwaves and soap operas, Rene must navigate the whims of radical colleagues, right-wing frenemies and the threats of a dictatorship that wants him to fail.
Most writers would use such a premise as an excuse to pen those game-plan scenes where intellectuals spit out vague taglines every few seconds or so. But Pedro Peirano (adapting from Antonio Skarmeta’s play) instead chooses heart and soul to govern the feel of the piece. Despite the length of this true story, Peirano finds time to let beats linger.
Grainy cinematography a la cinema verite evokes the warmth Peirano’s getting at. The film surrenders any pretense of high art for an aesthetic not unlike television. Capturing the machinations of a top-notch marketing team through such a common denominator medium, the film doesn’t condescend the Chilean masses supposedly subject to Rene’s strategizing. The absent snobbery is another unplayed note worth celebrating.
Speaking of something worth celebrating, Garcia’s turn as Rene quietly brings all the themes to bear. Rather than let his longer beats just froth, he knows how and when to reveal the wellspring of emotionality underneath his character’s slick veneer. More importantly, he knows, as in the climax, when not to show it.
Without speculating too much, suffice it to say that Rene discovers no difference between his political movement (or the “No” campaign) and the microwaves he’s peddled. His tagline for the “No” campaign — “Happiness is coming” — is just a blunt pronouncement of all that he’s ever sold to clients and, by extension, Chile.
Why will that pitch always work? And if it has worked forever, then when, dammit, will happiness actually arrive? Just a few of the questions raised in an otherwise enthralling film that, for this critic, deserves an emphatic YES.
Dive Verdict: ????
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