Overview
A Nobel laureate's return to his roots leads to unexpected chaos and revelations.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- sardonic
- uncomfortable
- arthouse movie night
- international film night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a sharply written, darkly comic examination of literary celebrity, provincial resentment, and the uneasy ethics of turning real people into fiction.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Daniel Mantovani has built his literary reputation from recognizable people and experiences in his hometown, whose residents resent their fictionalized portrayals.
Mantovani is a Nobel-winning author celebrated worldwide but receives an increasingly antagonistic welcome from his hometown.
The hometown invitation begins as an honor and gradually turns ominous as old grudges and personal hostility surface.
The premise centers on real people being transformed into characters in Mantovani’s novels, making the truth of his representations difficult to separate from reality.
Films like The Distinguished Citizen, and why
The Square
satirical literary world, returning outsider, and darkly comic provincial social friction
Birdman
biting social satire, artistic ego, and an accomplished protagonist confronting hostile public scrutiny
The Great Beauty
wry European comedy about cultural pretension, personal antagonism, and uncomfortable social performance
Movie Details
- Directors
- Gastón Duprat, Mariano Cohn
- Release Date
- 2016-09-08
- Runtime
- 118 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (293)
Cast
- Oscar Martínez
- Dady Brieva
- Andrea Frigerio
- Belén Chavanne
- Nora Navas
- Manuel Vicente
- Iván Steinhardt
- Marcelo D'Andrea
- Gustavo Garzón
- Julián Larquier Tellarini
Common questions
- What is The Distinguished Citizen about?
- A Nobel-winning novelist’s celebratory return to the Argentine town that inspired his fiction curdles into a mordant reckoning with the people he turned into characters.
- What is The Distinguished Citizen like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Distinguished Citizen as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Distinguished Citizen violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Distinguished Citizen as mild.
- What did critics think of The Distinguished Citizen?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a sharply written, darkly comic examination of literary celebrity, provincial resentment, and the uneasy ethics of turning real people into fiction.
- Which films are like The Distinguished Citizen?
- Films with a similar feel include The Square, Birdman, and The Great Beauty.
- How long is The Distinguished Citizen?
- The Distinguished Citizen runs 118 minutes.
