Leave it to Pablo Larrain to tackle two titanic true life figures and handle them in completely different ways, with both pictures resulting in awards season contention. Of course, plenty of attention is already falling on “Jackie” starring Natalie Portman, the director’s portrait of the former First Lady during her most trying days. However, there’s also Chile’s official Oscar entry “Neruda,” which earned strong buzz on the festival circuit all year, and brings Gael Garcia Bernal to the fore as the man searching for the rebellious poet. And today, we have the exclusive look at the new poster for the film.
Co-starring Luis Gnecco as the poet, the film is set in 1948, as Neruda has been impeached by the government. Police Prefect Óscar Peluchonneau (Bernal) is assigned to arrest the poet, who tries to flee the country with his wife Delia del Carril, but they are forced into hiding. In the struggle with his nemesis Peluchonneau, Neruda sees an opportunity to reinvent himself. He plays with the Prefect, leaving clues designed to make their game of cat-and-mouse more dangerous and more intimate, with Neruda emerging as a symbol for liberty and a literary legend.
“Neruda” opens on December 16th.
