Pablo Larrain on Portraying Pinochet as a Vampire in ‘El Conde’ to Counter Fascism ‘That Comes in Different Shapes and Forms’ Around the World
Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Chilean auteur Pablo Larraín is back in Venice – following “Spencer” in 2021 – with scathing satire “El Conde,” in which Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, a symbol of global fascism, resurfaces as a 250-year old vampire living in a rundown rural mansion after faking his death. The allegorical film, beautifully shot in black-and-white by ace cinematographer Ed Lachman, stars revered 87-year-old Chilean actor Jaime Vadell in the role of Pinochet, who in reality died at the age of 91 in 2006, unpunished and rich. During Pinochet’s 17-year regime, which began with a bloody military coup in 1973, more than 3,000 people died or disappeared due to political violence in Chile, which had previously experienced a long history of democracy.