Machuca

"Two boys observe a political coup in their native Chile."

2004 1h 56m ES

🙌

7.7

BANGER

🍅

87%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

7.7

IMDB

★7.7TMDB · 222🍅87%Rotten Tomatoes●76Metacritic★7.7IMDB · 12,778

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Santiago, capital of Chile during the Marxist government of elected, highly controversial president Salvador Allende. Father McEnroe supports his leftist views by introducing a program at the prestigious "collegio" (Catholic prep school) St. Patrick to allow free admission of some proletarian kids. One of them is Pedro Machuca, slum-raised son of the cleaning lady in Gonzalo Infante's liberal-bourgeois home. Yet the new classmates become buddies, paradoxically protesting together as Gonzalo gets adopted by Pedro's slum family and gang. But the adults spoil that too, not in the least when general Pinochet's coup ousts Allende, and supporters such as McEnroe.

“Two boys observe a political coup in their native Chile.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Matías Quer
Gonzalo Infante
Ariel Mateluna
Pedro Machuca
Aline Küppenheim
María Luisa
Ernesto Malbrán
Father McEnroe
Federico Luppi
Roberto
Manuela Martelli
Silvana
Tamara Acosta
Juana
Francisco Reyes
Patricio Infante

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Andrés Wood
Writers: Eliseo Altunaga, Roberto Brodsky, Andrés Wood
Languages: Spanish, English
Countries: Chile, France, Spain, United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 22 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Spanish, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 4 countries: Chile, France, Spain, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Andrés Wood, shot by M.I. Littin-Menz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Miguel Miranda. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Fernando Pardo shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Matías Quer and Ariel Mateluna and Aline Küppenheim carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Andrés Wood directs. M.I. Littin-Menz behind the camera. Miguel Miranda scores. Fernando Pardo cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in Chile, France, Spain, United Kingdom. Dialogue in Spanish, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Released 22 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Spanish, English.
4International production across 4 countries: Chile, France, Spain, United Kingdom.
5Directed by Andrés Wood, shot by M.I. Littin-Menz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Miguel Miranda. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Fernando Pardo shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Matías Quer and Ariel Mateluna and Aline Küppenheim carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Two boys observe a political coup in their native Chile.".
10IMDB entry: tt0378284 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 10 themes, including "1970s", "demonstration", "trauma", "santiago, chile".