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Nobody Knows I'm Here
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Wikipedia article
'Nobody Knows I'm Here' is a 2020 Chilean drama film directed by Gaspar Antillo and starring Jorge Garcia, Millaray Lobos, Luis Gnecco, Alejandro Goic and Gastn Pauls. It is Netflix's first Chilean original movie.
Plot
Memo Garrido lives with his uncle Braulio on a small verdant island in Llanquihue, a small, South Eastern Chilean town. While his life there is peaceful, he is tormented by traumatic memories he had as a child. Being a rather quiet man and talking very little, sparks interests of a local young woman, Marta who seems intrigued by Memo. She tries over some time to approach him and eventually they build a friendship that finally reveals Memo's biggest secret: That he was briefly famous as a singer. Throughout the film, we see Memo acting (when alone) as if he were performing, wearing his crimson glitter-studded cape pretending to be on stage.. this revealing his secret fantasy; that he wished he had made it as a famous singer.
As a kid, Memo lived in Miami - which is why he speaks an accented Spanish - and his father Jacinto who landed him a contract with a music producer decided that although Memo was a talented singer, his appearance was not enough to make him famous. For this reason he makes him a ghost singer for another young boy named ngelo instead. ngelo eventually becomes famous for the song 'Nobody Knows I'm Here', which the studio had originally recorded for Memo. During this period, Memo, angry at ngelo for this "fraud", attacked him after a performance seriously injuring him resulting in ngelo's permanent injuries and having to use a wheelchair. The viewer later learns that ngelo never sang again after his 'accident' and Memo became a recluse living and working on his uncle's farm on the secluded island while his father Jacinto lost all his money promoting his son's ghost singer act.
25 years later and after Marta and a friend posted a candid YouTube video of Memo singing at his home that he was unaware of, leads to her and his father's encouragement to "come out to the public" about who the true singer was. This lands him a spot on the television show "Face to Face" with ngelo, the ghost singer who is now living as a motivational speaker and promoting his book. The show attempts to reconcile the conflict between the two men.
During the "Face to Face" reunion, ngelo tells the public it is he who should apologize to Memo but never admits it was Memo singing so after the brief on-stage reunion, Memo leaves the stage angry and after the show goes off air, picks up the mic and sings the subject song live & beautifully, proving that he was the voice all along. However, the film suggests that Memo's truth never came to public light, because the performance was off air, and the viewer even wonders if Memo truly sang the full songa band suddenly appears and the red-toned light that accompanied Memo's series of fantasies imagining himself as a successful singer. Immediately before he begins to sing, we hear the producer in the background, seemingly asking ngelo if he actually sings. When the song has finished, Memo drops the microphone and walks out of the studio, and does a little dance move as he exits, perhaps displaying real joy or closure, even if it is only for himself.
Later, we see Marta crawl into bed with Memo and the scene fades out to music with a fine crimson light on them as they warmly spoon together.
Cast
Release
'Nobody Knows I'm Here' was originally set to premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, where Chilean director Gaspar Antillo won in the Best New Narrative Director category. However, the festival was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film was released globally on Netflix on June 24, 2020.
Reception
The film was positively received by critics, who have praised its earnestness and simplicity, Jorge Garca's performance, and its narrative structure.
References
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