Annual Top Films Lists

Top 100 Most Anticipated Foreign Films of 2016: #89. Matias Pineiro’s Hermia & Helena

Published on January 6, 2016

Hermia & Helena

Director: Matias Pineiro
Writer: Matias Pineiro

Argentinian filmmaker Matias Pineiro, known for his droll comedies in direct conversation with Shakespeare’s text, seems to be continuing onward in that trend. While his last work, 2014s The Princess of France, which toyed with Love’s Labours Lost, wasn’t as excitedly received as his 2012 film Viola, Pineiro still nails an intriguing modern context with titles and themes. His next, Hermia & Helena, named for two characters from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, apparently filmed in Montana and New York, will be his first English language feature, so we’re expecting confounding elements that further explore shifting ideas about the meaning of nationality. Pineiro confirmed in August he was editing the feature after several filming periods throughout October and December of 2014 and March of 2015.

Cast: Augustina Munoz

Production Co./Producer: Graham Swindoll

U.S. Distributor: Rights available. TBD (domestic/international)

Release Date: Princess of France (2014) and They All Lie (2009) competed at Locarno, while 2012’s Viola premiered at TIFF before stopping at Berlin. We’re expecting Hermia & Helena to follow one of those routes.

Nicholas Bell

Los Angeles based Nicholas Bell is IONCINEMA.com's Chief Film Critic and covers film festivals such as Sundance, Berlin, Cannes and TIFF. He is part of the critic groups on Rotten Tomatoes, The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS) and GALECA. His top 3 for 2021: France (Bruno Dumont), Passing (Rebecca Hall) and Nightmare Alley (Guillermo Del Toro). He was a jury member at the 2019 Cleveland International Film Festival.