Why would anyone want to watch a historical drama from Chile about a political referendum that was held 25 years ago? Well, because No is a bona-fide crowd pleaser, as taut as Argo and as appealing as Game Change.
Pablo Larrain’s Oscar-nominated drama tells the story of a youthful ad man, René (Gael Garcia Bernal), who creates an ad campaign that changes the history of his country. In 1988, Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet called a referendum for people to vote on whether they wanted him to stay in power. A ‘Yes’ vote would keep him at the top for eight years. A ‘No’ vote would press him to step down. Like so much of Western political life today, there is much public ambivalence toward the race, but also the chance for a campaign to arrest citizens’ attention and spur change.
This is where René comes in, grabbing the public eyeballs in a cheesy but buoyant set of commercials to let Chileans know the benefits of democracy. The aired footage is pandering but sincere, filled with smiling children, a catchy jingle and a tacky rainbow insignia. It is a shiny, if superficial glimpse at what democracy looks like, and it gets the country talking.
Bernal is excellent as the exuberant lead, a youthful representative who likes to be in control of his destiny. The film is also a stylistic triumph, as cinematographer Sergio Armstrong films it with a grainy video camera. The scenes are low-fi, the drained vibrancy of the images placing the audience back at a time where the media was only starting to become more omnipresent in how we view political life. It is a fascinating and often fun glimpse into one rambunctious referendum, filled with sharp humour and strong performances.
