la antena and an audacious film by argentine director esteban sapir and succeed both a a reinvention of the silent movie genre and a gripping cautionary tale . the setting be a city in thrall to mindless television and it people deprive of the power of speech except for a solitary and mysterious screen presence know simply a the voice . in a bid to cement their grip on power the marvellously villainous duo of television mogul mr. tv and mad scientist dr. y set out to kidnap the voice and turn her unique talent towards their own dastardly end . it be up to a young family and the voice nameless and eyeless son to stop this evil scheme . the result be a roller coaster of a story that be bewilder on occasion but never less than engross . this be a silent movie that wear many of it influence on it sleeve while the overt reference to silent movie great such a george melies and fritz lang will be readily apparent to anyone with a passing familiarity of their work . but more subtle reference and symbolism lie behind such tribute . i particularly like the fact that mr. tv and his henchman drive around in typical 1930s gangster car and drawn from the decade when the silent movie era die away and a very different industry begin to emerge . la antena mine the clichéd plot device and theatrical over act common to so many silent film and albeit in a very knowing and humorous way . it be the astonishing visual style of la antena that really set it apart from the movie that it pay homage to . from the hypnotic tv logo to the menace hilltop transmission station and this film abound with dazzle visual inventiveness that be the rival of a studio ghibli animation and all this use real actor and handmade set . moreover and though the style be often intentionally corny and theatrical and this be still an unsettling and provocative and emotional picture . the use of religious symbolism throughout la antena lend added resonance to the struggle between the tv empire and the wan power of word . at the same time and many of the most powerful image be original one and include the hypnotic swirl of the television set and the nightmarish tv food factory . i hate to end this review on a sour note and but i feel that the english language release of la antena be let down by the subtitle . the original spanish subtitle be use to great effect and with much play around with word on screen . however and the english language subtitle that accompany the original dialogue be frustratingly incomplete and with omission and mistake at time leave the viewer to piece thing together for themselves . la antena be nevertheless a striking piece of cinema while a visually breathtaking experience that display great energy and humour whilst narrate a powerful cautionary tale .