El recuento de los daños

A young man arrives in a provincial town to assess the efficiency of a factory and finds things in disorder. As the director of the factory had died in an accident the night before, his widow and her brother take over the management. Soon, a mutual attraction develops between the newcomer and the significantly older woman, on whom this relationship eventually has a shattering effect. At the factory, things are going downhill as well.

The signs are obvious from the start. But the full extent of the tragedy unfolds only gradually. The tragedy of Oedipus, who unwittingly kills his father and marries his mother. The tragedy of the victims of Argentina's military dictatorship, who were abducted, detained in secret prison camps and separated from their children. The tragedy of the children, who were put up for adoption and left in the dark about their background. Lives damaged forever. The ancient tale and the contemporary one blend into each other with astonishing ease. The camera smoothly follows the distraught family members, yet always keeps a respectful distance, and as it occasionally drifts out of focus or captures just fragments of a situation, it reminds the audience that one can only ever hear, see, and understand a section of the complete picture.