Rent The Pearl Button (2015)
3.7 of 5 from 104 ratings
1h 22min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
After the acclaimed 'Nostalgia for the Light' with its study of the desert, the stars, light and time, as well as the recent memory and remains of disappeared people in Northern Chile under Pinochet, Patricio Guzman takes us on a journey into the water and ocean of Southern Chile. Water, the longest border in Chile, also holds the secret of a mysterious button embedded in a rail found on its ocean floor. Chile, with its 2,670 miles of coastline and the largest archipelago in the world, presents a supernatural landscape. In it are volcanoes, mountains and glaciers. In it are the voices of the Patagonian indigenous people and their tragic history, the first English sailors who took back to England a native traded for a button (then nicknamed Jemmy Button), and also those of its political prisoners from the Pinochet era. Using both archival images and gorgeous new footage, 'The Pearl Button' manages once again to convey different periods of history and geography in a gripping tale of our modern world. - Actors:
- Raúl Zurita
- Directors:
- Patricio Guzmán
- Producers:
- Renate Sachse
- Voiced By:
- Patricio Guzmán
- Narrated By:
- Patricio Guzmán
- Writers:
- Patricio Guzmán
- Aka:
- El botón de nácar
- Studio:
- New Wave Films
- Genres:
- Documentary, Special Interest
- Collections:
- New waves of Latin American Cinema, What to watch by country
- Awards:
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Reviews (3) of The Pearl Button
Fascinating Insight into the history of Chile - The Pearl Button review by Peter B
A philosophical and artistic interpretation of the history of Chile, starting with a detailed analysis of indigenous peoples of Patagonia and moving on to the crimes against humanity during the Pinochet military dictatorship backed by the USA and CIA. Great photography and interesting interviews with the few remaining indigenous survivors. I recently read This Thing of Darkness, which is about Captain Fitzroy's command of the Beagle with young Charles Darwin on board. Having been lucky enough to visit Patagonia en route to Antarctica, I admire the indigenous people who managed to live in this wild and desolate landscape for thousands of years. The Pinochet years still cast a long shadow over the soul of Chile.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Definitely worth watching - The Pearl Button review by PM
As a subject well out of the mainstream, this film ties together a variety of artistic and documentary strands to create a convincing picture of the tragedy of the human condition.
I would love to watch it again.
2 out of 2 members found this review helpful.
Slender running time - lack of focus - The Pearl Button review by AER
Patricio Guzman's potentially fascinating documentary that blends subjects as wides as the extraterrestrial origins of water, Pinochet's reign of murderous terror, and the genocide against Chile's indigenous tribes of the South over the centuries. As a gateway to gleaning stories and information, The Pearl Button is a good start but at an hour and 18 minutes long, this packs too much in and you only get a mood flavour as opposed to a focused message.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.