Official Competition 

Showtimes July 18 - 21:

“When we think a film is good… is it good?,” Official Competition asks. With its colorful palette, fantastic style, wicked humor, and perfect casting, this satire about the world of high art is very good indeed. Directed by Argentinian filmmakers Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, the comedy is set in Spain where billionaire Humberto Suarez (José Luis Gómez) has just celebrated his 80th birthday. Reflecting on his legacy, Humberto decides he would like to be remembered “by something that lasts – like a bridge! Or a movie!” Deciding to produce a great film, he buys the rights to the Nobel prize-winning novel, Rivalry, and hires the esteemed filmmaker, Lola Cuevas (Penélope Cruz), to direct.

Hollywood star Félix Rivero (Antonio Banderas) and aging theater thespian Iván Torres (Oscar Martinez) are cast in the film’s central roles. While they’re both legends, they’re not exactly the best of friends, and the juiciness of Official Competition lies in the way they try to one up the other with passive-aggressive behavior – like making the other wait – or aggressive-aggressive behavior – like when they literally fight. To top it off, Lola uses unorthodox methods and exercises to direct the duo. One involves them having to perform a scene under a giant boulder “to feel the weight” of their characters’ emotions. Another has them literally tied together “to lose all autonomy” and “be as one” while something drastic happens. At the end of all of this challenge and rivalry, it’s the audience of Official Competition who wins, for whom the film is a fiendishly entertaining tour de force.

(Spain, Argentina / 2021 / Directed by Gastón Duprat  & Mariano Cohn)
R / 1 hr 54 min