Of Love and Shadows

Set in Chile under the Pinochet dictatorship, Of Love and Shadows follows Irene, a magazine editor whose comfortable life keeps her at a distance from the country's political reality. When Francisco, a photographer, arrives at the magazine looking for work, the two become involved both professionally and personally. Francisco is connected to the underground resistance, and through him Irene is confronted with the violence carried out by the state. Their investigation into the disappearance of a woman brings them face to face with the brutality of the regime and forces Irene to reconsider the world she has been living in.

The film is a drama directed by Betty Kaplan, who made it as her first feature, ahead of Art of Love in 2021. Donald Freed wrote the screenplay, and Paul Mayersohn, Richard Goodwin and Kaplan produced. Jennifer Connelly plays Irene and Antonio Banderas plays Francisco, with Stefania Sandrelli, Diego Wallraff, Camilo Gallardo and Patricio Contreras in supporting roles. It was an Argentine and American co-production running 103 minutes, released in May 1994.

Audience reception has been modest: on IMDb the film holds a rating of 4.9 from around 2,600 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 5.4 from roughly 105 votes. Both figures point to a limited and largely unenthusiastic response from viewers.