Prison in the Andes (Spanish: Penal Cordillera) is a 2023 drama film written and directed by Felipe Carmona in his directorial debut. Starring Bastián Bodenhöfer and Hugo Medina accompanied by Andrew Bargsted, Mauricio Pesutic, Alejandro Trejo, Óscar Hernández, Daniel Alcaíno and Juan Carlos Maldonado. It is about 5 military generals who participated in the Pinochet dictatorship and who are imprisoned in the "Penal Cordillera", a luxurious prison from which they will not want to leave when the government wants to transfer them to a regular prison.
Prison in the Andes had its world premiere at the 67th BFI London Film Festival on 6 October 2023, where it competed for the Sutherland Trophy.
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Synopsis
Five of the most cruel torturers of the Pinochet dictatorship are serving sentences of several centuries in a luxurious prison at the foot of the Andes. It is an enclosure with a swimming pool, gardens and aviaries where they are always watched by guards who look more like their employees. When a television crew interviews Contreras, one of the inmates, his statements have an unexpected impact. Fearing that they will be transferred to a common prison, the military will do everything possible to stay in place, unleashing delirium and violence in the middle of the mountains.
Cast
The actors participating in this film are:
Hugo Medina as Manuel Contreras
Bastián Bodenhöfer as Miguel Krassnoff
Alejandro Trejo as Odlanier Mena
Mauricio Pesutic as Marcelo Moren Brito
Óscar Hernández as Pedro Espinoza
Daniel Alcaíno as Alcaide
Andrew Bargsted as Navarrete
Juan Carlos Maldonado as Galdames
Nicolás Zárate as Castro
Release
It had its world premiere on October 6, 2023, in the First Feature Competition section at the 67th BFI London Film Festival, then was screened on November 12, 2023, at the 49th Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, on December 10, 2023, at the 28th International Film Festival of Kerala, on June 9, 2024, at the 39th Guadalajara International Film Festival and on August 10, 2024, at the 28th Lima Film Festival.
It was commercially released on November 23, 2023, in Chilean theaters.