Invisible Authorities and Visible Authorizations in “Rompecabezas” by Natalia Smirnoff

Abstract

In the Argentinian cinema of the end of the 90’s and beginning of the 21st century, the representations of femininity and masculinity have become richer thanks to alternative visions, most frequently proposed by female directors. Natalia Smirnoff’s film Rompecabezas (Puzzle) is a perfect example. It tells the story of an ordinary woman whose psychosexual awakening shakes up the invisible forces that had dictated her life up to that point. Rompecabezas explores the everlasting effect and influence on the patriarchal structures in constructing identity. The aim of this work, rooted in a gender perspective, is to study in what way both hierarchy and symbolic systems operate and to what extent Natalia Smirnoff provides us with a powerful (re)vision of transformation for women.