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I am from Brazil and this movie is coming out this weekend. I am really excited to see it despite the negative comments I have read!
Who has seen both Argentine and American versions?
Do not give me major spoilers but are the movies alike or the American version is different?
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They are more or less alike. The setting and timing of the events are different, of course.
A few of the bigger differences that I can tell you about without spoiling much:
• In the Argentine version, it is a man seeking justice for the rape and murder of his wife. In the US version, it is a woman (who is also an investigator, played by Julia Roberts) seeking justice for the rape and murder of her daughter.
• In the Argentine version, the revisiting of flashback sequences are told by way of a novel that one of the main characters (now retired in the film) is writing. In the US version, the character played by Chiwetel Ejiofor is seeking to re-open the old case.
• The original contains strong connections to Argentina's "Dirty War." In the remake, that has been replaced (not nearly as effectively) with 9/11-related story points.
I can't say too much more without giving away major plot details. But that's the basic gist of it.
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Thank you, thank you a million! You really helped me clear my doubts. :)
Did you like both versions?
The other poster laid out all of the plot differences (and very well, I might add), but there is also a huge difference in tone, themes, and chemistry between the actors. In the American version, there is zero chemistry between the actors, so it feels very flat. In the Argentine version, you can almost taste the chemistry. It's near perfect. Have you seen the Argentine version? I'm not going to spoil anything, but it has been a while since I've seen it and I recall the title of the film playing a much bigger role thematically in the Argentine version, whereas in the American version, that theme was non-existent. I just can't remember how it was dealt with in the Argentine version. I don't believe the audience was hammered over the head with it, but I feel like it was much more obvious. They made a point to point out the similarity between the pictures of the bad guy looking at the victim and the good guy looking at his boss and how they both had the same passion, but they used it differently. I just found that theme in the original to be so well done and so relevant whereas in the American version it simply doesn't exist, which is disappointing.
Honestly though, I really thought I was going to hate the American remake and I did not. It wasn't good by any means. Just merely mediocre. If you're not a cinephile and just a casual movie viewer, I wouldn't recommend wasting your time on the American version, but if you do have the time and the desire, I don't think you'll be too disappointed for seeing it.
"This life's hard, man, but it's harder if you're stupid!"