We Don't Want to Talk About It

The title of Bemberg's subtle, touching film refers to the determination expressed by the proud widow Leonor (Brando) regarding the condition of her daughter Charlotte (Podestá). Quite simply, Leonor will not accept the fact that the girl is a dwarf. Instead, she showers her beloved progeny with kindness and encourages her interest in the arts - an interest which forms the basis of a friendship between the teenager and Don Ludovico D'Andrea (Mastroianni), an elderly bachelor of mysterious origins who falls profoundly in love with the girl. Set in a small Argentinian town in the '40s, Bemberg's poignant fable succeeds largely through understatement and the principals' superb performances. Mercifully, while there are a few faintly surreal touches, the magic here derives from the cool, unsentimental, down-to-earth appraisal of the trio's tangled emotions. It's a tender movie, but never needlessly romanticised, and not without its quiet cruelties.