Via a casual Google search, director Juan Mandelbaum discovered that Patricia, a long-lost ex-girlfriend from Argentina, was among the thousands kidnapped, tortured, and "disappeared" by Argentina's military dictatorship of 1976–83. The filmmaker undertook a journey to find out what happened to Patricia and others he knew that disappeared, re-examining his own choices along the way. Using rare archival footage, the film evokes the longing for a revolution that would transform Argentina. As he shares dramatic stories told by parents, siblings, friends, and children of the disappeared, Mandelbaum grieves their tragic losses. Our Disappeared demonstrates that when brutal regimes attack the fabric of a country, the suffering lasts for generations.

Organized by William Sloan, independent curator, and Sally Berger, Assistant Curator, Department of Film.

February 26, 2009

Tags MoMa film exhibitions Juan+Mandelbaum disappeared Our+Disappeared military dictatorship February