A 2008 Argentinian film written and directed by Lucrecia Martel, The Headless Woman is the richly detailed, occasionally disturbing portrait of a well-to-do woman whose life is suddenly turned upside-down.
While driving along a secluded stretch of road, Vero (Maria Onetto - momentarily distracted - hits something (or someone) with her car. Afraid to get out and look, she simply drives away, and for the next few days is haunted by the notion that she may have killed somebody.
From start to finish, The Headless Woman is an engrossing thriller, thanks in large part to the performance of its star, Maria Onetto. Initially, Vero refuses to talk to anyone about what happened, yet by her very mannerisms we see that she can think of nothing else. At one point, she jumps into the shower with her clothes on, and later finds it difficult to concentrate during the simplest conversations. Though she remains silent through a fair portion of the film, we sense that Vero’s mind is constantly spinning, and that she’s losing control.
A deeply dramatic motion picture, The Headless Woman is nonetheless subtle in its approach to the material; it’s Onetto’s performance alone that keeps us on the edge of our seats.
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
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