Lion's Den

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Lion's Den

2009,

1h 53m,

Drama

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Watchlist

Watchlist

91%

32 Reviews

Tomatometer

72%

5,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

32 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

In the hazy morning after a threesome, expectant mother Julia Zárate (Martina Gusmán) finds her partner dead in her flat, and his fling, Ramiro (Rodrigo Santoro), badly injured. Police arrive on the scene and promptly throw Julia behind bars, where she awaits trial. As her pregnancy progresses, Julia sinks into a deep depression. But she sheds her quiet, defeated demeanor when the eventual birth of her son, Tomás (Tomás Plotinsky), gives her a reason to live.

Critics Consensus

Martina Gusmán gives a feral performance in the Lion's Den, a gripping prison drama so real even the camera perspires behind bars.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

Mar 26, 2010

3/5

Frustratingly, the film tells us little about the crime itself and the denouement is a little unconvincing. The taste of sweat and fear is, however, real enough.

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Tim Robey

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Mar 25, 2010

4/4

Real inmates are extras, real cells provide the scenery: it has the desperate vitality of something barely made-up.

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Nigel Andrews

Financial Times

Mar 25, 2010

3/5

Less than the sum of its parts? Yes. Nice parts? Yes.

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Samantha Schuster

Cinéfilo Serial

Jul 17, 2025

4/5

It's a heartfelt and necessary work by Pablo Trapero, which reflects the situation of pregnant women and/or women with children in Argentine prisons. An intense and moving drama. [Full Review in Spanish]

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Diego Batlle

Otroscines.com

Aug 18, 2023

Any minimal reproach that can be made to the film is easily overlooked by the narrative power... [Full review in Spanish]

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Diego Brodersen

Otroscines.com

Aug 18, 2023

4.5/5

Lion's Den is the film by a team -actress and director- who fully trusts the material at hand, building, unlike few recent Argentine films, an absolute emotional empathy with the protagonist. [Full review in Spanish]

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Pablo Trapero

Director

Martina Gusmán

Julia

Elli Medeiros

Sofia

Rodrigo Santoro

Ramiro

Laura García

Marta

Tomás Plotinsky

Tomás VI

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Synopsis

In the hazy morning after a threesome, expectant mother Julia Zárate (Martina Gusmán) finds her partner dead in her flat, and his fling, Ramiro (Rodrigo Santoro), badly injured. Police arrive on the scene and promptly throw Julia behind bars, where she awaits trial. As her pregnancy progresses, Julia sinks into a deep depression. But she sheds her quiet, defeated demeanor when the eventual birth of her son, Tomás (Tomás Plotinsky), gives her a reason to live.

Director: Pablo Trapero
Producer: Suh Youngjoo, Pablo Trapero
Screenwriter: Alejandro Fadel, Martín Mauregui, Santiago Mitre, Pablo Trapero
Distributor: Strand Releasing
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Spanish
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 3, 2009, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 26, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $13.7K
Runtime: 1h 53m

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