El Clan

The aftermath of Argentina's fascist liaison, a vicious patriarch possessing a specialized set of subversive skills, a son seditiously seduced by paternal sentiment, enlisted, nurtured, suddenly kidnapping wealthy citizens then requesting lavish ransoms, the assembled team working in unison to collect the nefarious booty, no quarter for victims, no peace for their families, the Puccios movin'-on-up in the world, as their country settles its psychotic score.

They were considered role models.

But the good life, the freewheeling prestige of excessive contemplation and leisure, beckons with demonic reckoning, envy consuming Arquímedes as he cannot accept a modest homely joie de vivre.

Exponentials.

El Clan focuses heavily on the relationship between Arquímedes and eldest son Alejandro (Peter Lanzani), suggesting the former's corrupt constitution thoroughly polluted his offspring.

The soundtrack's like that you would find in a film uncritically characterizing a rock'n'roll drug trafficker, the highs reached through financial freedom (notably Alejandro's relationship with Mónica [Stefanía Koessi]), while hauntingly foreshadowing losses yet to come.

Introducing neighbours would have accentuated the villainy by depicting Arquímedes engaged in respectable convivialities.

There's a great sequence where the camera follows him through his house as he discusses sitting down to dinner with his loving family before opening a door to feed his terrorized prisoner, which accentuates his villainy, his duplicitous communal role, however, even if the sequence is intense and memorable its impact still fades and neighbourly relations would have sustained the hypocrisy.

El Clan vividly portrays a criminal family and dynamically brings its featured and supporting characters to life, but if more attention had been paid to Argentina's post-fascist deluge it would have attained higher heights.

A convincing illustration of maniacal competence that would have been enhanced by a more thorough diversification of scorched sociopolitical agendas, El Clan douses home fires without igniting paradigm shifts, Pablo Trapero still demonstrating he can take it to the next level.