50
Clandestine Childhood is a sincere effort but also rather sincerely a meager one too.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
60
If such outré flourishes don't fully lift the story past the limitations of innocence-lost storytelling, they do suggest Ávila is an artist worth keeping an eye on.
50
Benjamín Ávila structures the film as a series of precious moments, remembrances of a difficult year when the politics of patria and family got in the way of his puppy love.
60
New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman
Avila has a tough task, visualizing violent and complicated events through a child's eyes. The calmer scenes are staged in staid and somewhat clunky fashion, but the graphic animation depicting the worst moments is starkly effective.
50
The New York Times by Manohla Dargis
When a filmmaker proves as reluctant as Mr. Ávila to speak up about the past, to engage with its full complexity, it can be hard to hear what he's saying.
75
Clandestine Childhood is the impressive first feature by Argentine director Benjamín Avila.