Abstract

The article reflects on the biopic genre in relation to history, memory and nostalgia, based on the case of the Argentine film El Ángel (Luis Ortega, 2018), based on the life of serial killer Carlos Robledo Puch and his crimes in the early 1970s. The film slides from the biographical account to a broader scope: that of reflection –in a pop style– about evil. The biography of Robledo Puch works as an excuse to tell a story that deals with the problems of evil and freedom, beauty and perversion, violence and eroticism, as the reverse of the “normal” life, the gray existence of the social majorities that remain anonymous. With a nostalgic approach to the 70’s, Ortega’s biopic uses Robledo’s name and some historical circumstances to give identity to a character with a mythical essence.

Keywords: Argentine cinema | Biographical cinema | Biopic | Memory; Nostalgia