Film Review: BELÉN (2025): Argentinian Drama Focuses on a Devastatingly Complex Story with Plenty of Determination

Belén Review

Belén (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Dolores Fonzi, written by Laura Paredes, Dolores Fonzi, Nicolás Britos and Agustina San Martín and starring Julieta Cardinali, Dolores Fonzi, Luis Machín, Camila Plaate, César Troncoso and Laura Paredes.

Belén is filmmaker Dolores Fonzi’s powerful and unflinching drama about the quest for truth and justice. It focuses on a woman named Julieta (Camila Plaate) whose life spirals out of control after she is hospitalized and unjustly charged with the murder of a child. In Tucumán, Argentina, the movie lays its base for the story of Julieta who enters into the hospital with intense pains in her stomach and is admitted, only to later learn that she is being charged as a criminal. This devastating story is a layered political statement about women’s rights and the justice system and is expertly helmed by Fonzi who is able to shed significant light on a topic that would be difficult to approach without the proper story telling techniques which are, indeed, employed here and utilized quite efficiently.

Fonzi also stars in the film, portraying Soledad Deza, a lawyer unafraid of taking on the groundbreaking case that is the framework for this cinematic rarity that manages to get the audience caught up in a fight to overcome an unfair system that judges and declares Julieta guilty without asking questions first. Julieta had suffered a miscarriage, but she was deemed a murderer in a situation that exploded out of control. So, as Soledad takes on a case that could be dangerous to embark on, the viewer will be fascinated by the ways the story develops as ordinary people take the side of Julieta to the point where her freedom becomes a movement that will change the country and the world forever.

Julieta Cardinali portrays the lawyer initially assigned to the case at the movie’s center who tries to argue that Julieta had cause for what she “did.” However, it is Soledad Deza who becomes the number one ally of Julieta and the woman’s only chance for freedom. Set in the mid-2010’s, the picture has Julieta eventually be called Belén, a name which has religious symbolism and brings the level of her situation up to a higher, more profound level. As women in white masks unite to see that justice is served, the movie is always probing and never hits a false note.

As Julieta’s life is harrowingly presented, we learn of her unfortunate suffering and her need to escape the unfair determination that has been thrust against her for a crime she didn’t commit. This film is an Oscar entry from Argentina for the next Academy Awards and has a lot of potential to soar with voters as the premise is executed in such a way that Julieta’s story becomes the viewer’s story as well. One can place themselves in her devastating predicament and feel what it’s like to be in a hopeless scenario with little chance of changing the outlook of the particular situation.

Through the legal aspects of the movie, we learn that people lied about the fetus which was supposedly murdered by Julieta through her actions. Different ages, and sexes of the fetus in reports prove there’s corruption of the highest order and those on the side of the law involved in the plot seek hope for Julieta in an effort to see justice served in a time and place where abortion was illegal. After years of suffering, Julieta finally finds a glimmer of potential to escape her supposed fate, and the audience will be with her every step of the way.

The performances are all top-flight. Plaate has a difficult role here and the actress is definitely up to the task of portraying a wide range of emotions and devastating believability in the role she plays. Her Julieta is determined and Plaate is brilliant and fearless in the portrayal of a woman who helped change a nation through the fight her lawyer embarked on to see Julieta freed and acquitted of the crimes brought against her.

Fonzi, as a director and an actress, is a compelling force that drives the film towards success. Fonzi’s performance is determined, and the performer plays the role with great complexity and depth. We see the way the lawyer she plays operates and the integrity of her motives in her quest to see that the truth is brought out. There is reasoning here which is to help save the future of any woman in a similar predicament who finds herself in such a dire situation. Fonzi’s work is riveting both behind and in front of the camera.

Belén is a carefully constructed and accomplished cinematic achievement.  It not only inspires hope but gives us the inspiration needed to attack important issues with fierce determination in real situations. This movie proves the fight for truth and for justice is worth sacrificing everything for. What is a life without justice if not a shattered one, anyway? This picture is a dramatic film of high quality and keeps the viewer in awe right from the opening moments to the heroic closing ones.

Rating: 8.5/10

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