A Promise to the Dead
Canada, 2007, 91 mins
Director: Peter Raymont
Website
9:00pm, Sat, Nov 3
at Paramount
Festivals
- Toronto International Film Festival, International Documentary Festival, Amsterdam, Leipzig, Sheffield, Cork and Sao Paulo.
Description
An exploration of exile, memory, longing, and democracy, as seen through the eyes and life experiences of writer Ariel Dorfman ("Death and the Maiden"). Born in Argentina, growing up in New York and then Chile, Dorfman became cultural advisor to Chile's socialist president, Salvador Allende. When the Allende government fell in the military coup of September 11, 1973, Dorfman had to make the most crucial decision in his life. Later he was told that his life was spared because "someone had to live to tell the story." Shot in Argentina, USA, and Chile (coinciding with the death of Dorfman's nemesis, General Pinochet), and incorporating a wealth of rare archival footage, this feature length documentary is based in part, on Dorfman's memoir, "Heading South, Looking North".