Argentinean filmmaker Daniel Burman writes and directs the ensemble film El Abrazo Partido (Lost Embrace), a follow-up to his 2000 feature Waiting for the Messiah. Daniel Hendler plays Ariel, a young man who lives in a Jewish working-class section of Buenos Aires. Since his father went missing in the war, his mother Sonia (Adriana Aizenberg) and brother Joseph (Sergio Boris) work in the shopping and business district. With no interest in school or work, Ariel hangs out and sleeps with Rita (Silvina Bosco). He finally gets the idea to move to Poland, so asks his grandmother (Rosita Londner), ex-girlfriend Estela (Melina Petriella), and Rabbi Benderson (Norman Erlich) for help. Meanwhile, a host of characters make up Ariel's multicultural neighborhood. Cesar Lerner provides the musical score. Lost Embrace won two Silver Bear awards at the Berlin Film Festival in 2004.
~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide