Fabián Bielinsky	...	(Director)
Fabián Bielinsky	...	(Writer)
Ricardo Darín	...	Esteban Espinosa (The taxidermist)
Dolores Fonzi	...	Diana Dietrich
Pablo Cedrón	...	Sosa
Nahuel Pérez Biscayart	...	Julio
Jorge D'Elía	...	Urien
Alejandro Awada	...	Sontag
Rafa Castejón	...	Vega
Manuel Rodal	...	Carlos Dietrich
Walter Reyno	...	Montero
Alejandro Gancé	...
Daniel Alejandro Ovando	...
Guido D'Albo	...	Hotel administrator
Daniel Delevin	...
Eva	...	The dog
Claudio Rissi	...	Vega (voice)
Victoria Vescio	...	Vanina, the prostitue's daughter
Checco Varese	...	Cinematographer
Lucio Godoy	...	Composer

Comments: It's sad Fabián Bielinsky died (young) after making this film because El Aura demonstrates clearly that its director has mastered his domain. There are a few puzzling moments in the script and its characters, but this isn't one of those "Don't go in that room!" thrillers, it's old-school/neo-noir; quietly intense and full of suspense.

Ricardo Darín's peculiarly charactered performance is executed with such subtlety and nuance that it's hard to believe he's acting. The sound design and original score are beautiful, and so perfect for the film they seem to be growing out of it rather than being imposed upon it. There are times when the lack of any soundtrack is deafening. The droning tensions and lilting piano ennui disappear, punctuating the moments of action with a moribund silence.

Sometimes I complain when a film ends with such ambiguity it appears to be a cop-out. But not here. The ending will make you rethink the journey you were just on but it won't devalue its magnificence. This is one of those rare films where the ride is so engaging that its hard to imagine anything but disappointment merely because it does end.

"Aura" is what doctors use to describe the moment before falling into epileptic seizure. Ricardo Darín's character describes it as a moment of pure freedom. The inevitable is so clear that decisions are impossible, hence ... Freedom. Clarity.

★★★★★

Summary: A quiet, cynic taxidermist, who suffers epilepsy attacks, is obsessed with committing the perfect crime. He claims that the cops are too stupid to find out about it when it's well executed, and that the robbers are too stupid to execute it the right way; and that he could do it himself relying on his photographic memory and his strategic planning skills. After he is invited on a hunting trip away from his home, an accident gives him the chance of his life: the possibility to commit the perfect crime he has been waiting for.