How to Win Enemies
Meta mystery movie from Argentina that looses its charm in its final act
Gabriel Lichtman’s whimsical pseudo-detective tale revolves around young lawyer Lucas’ attempts to imitate the sleuthing skills of his treasured detective novels after a first date ends in him awakening to discover that the beautiful woman who chanced into his life the day before has robbed him blind.
The film has charm and the cast is rounded out with lively characters – like The Pelican, an aspiring actor happy to lend his overacting skills to any lawyer in need of a pretend witness – but Lichtman never really does enough with his meta-detective premise. The mystery arises, a few throwaway references to Agatha Christie are made and then it’s all solved and resolved in an oddly spiteful final set piece.
It’s far from 'my life savings have been stolen!' bad – actually, it’s a perfectly enjoyable flick – but Lucas’ disappointment when he wakes up to find that the night that showed such promise has not panned out at all as he would have liked is just a little too relatable when the end credits roll.
How to Win Enemies screens in Glasgow Film Festival: 21 Feb, CCA, 9pm | 22 Feb, CCA 1.30pm
Read more about Glasgow Film Festival in The CineSkinny – in print at Glasgow Film Festival venues and online at theskinny.co.uk/film/cineskinny
The CineSkinny is brought to you by MUBI, the online cinema bringing you hand-picked film gems every day.