AZOR: FILM REVIEW
Andreas Fontana’s Azor follows the affairs of society’s upper-echelon as the world around them burns. Flames lick their brazen suits, and they barely flinch. The film wistfully sizzles — enveloping the viewer into a world that melts to a crisp when it is closely examined.
Set in the 1980s, Azor follows private Swiss banker Yvan de Wiel (Fabrizio Rongione) on a trip to Argentina with his wife Inés (Stéphanie Cléau). The trip is neither a vacation, nor is it strictly business; it’s a bit more personal than that. Yvan is on a mission to investigate his business partner Keys’ sudden disappearance and to finish what he left behind. Although Keys makes only a brief cameo at the beginning of the film, his presence is undeniably marked. His reputation is crafted by the memories of those who knew him — and stands as one that straddles hate and love. While some speak of Keys with great disdain, others beam with great admiration. Keys is simultaneously mesmerizing, untrustworthy, and brilliant; his character is just one of the film’s many mysteries.
Azor is set in the midst of Argentina’s Dirty War — a time between 1976 to 1983 where Argentina’s military dictatorship purged around 30,000 left-wing activists through kidnappings and killings. Tension within the country is hard to ignore on the streets. In one of the film’s opening scenes, a questioning police officer aggressively stops Yvan and Inés’ driver. He inquires about their whereabouts and asks to see their IDs. Yvan and Inés sit calmly in the back — as if shielding themselves from the events occurring right in front of their eyes. Rules? They don’t apply to them.
The film uncovers pieces of Keys’ puzzle, but never reveals the full picture. The plot moves through impromptu meetings, bellowing gardens, and knowing smiles. A dinner or late-night party is never just that — and often it feels like the warmly-dimmed room only serves to mask the cold hunger of wealth and power within the space. No one is willing to surrender their time, and when discussions take place, it is unclear who they’re really for.
Yvan goes on a dog hunt to chase down a major client, Aníbal Farrell (Ignacio Vila), to persuade him not to withdraw his assets. He finally gets five minutes with him — only to have his lawyer Dekerman (Juan Pablo Gereto) reveal later that Farrell made his decision long before the meeting. Dekerman says to Yvan that Farrell was obsessed with Keys "like an addict sucking his dealer's cock." Yvan tries to mask his surprise, but it’s written all over his face. Games are always on the table.
Azor is disparaging in the sense that it shows how those with money and power remain insidious, even among their closest circles. The film bleeds with corruption, and it seems that the world that Yvan and Inés live in would be lost without it. The absence of evidence supporting any theory or explanation for Keys’ disappearance is its own message. Fontana’s Azor moves slowly, but intimidates with the quietness of its characters — all of whom seem ready to burst at any second, but choose to live in silence instead. Some things are better left unsaid.