Produced in 1985, The Official Story is a dramatic Argentine film that won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film that same year. It was directed by Luis Puenzo and starred Héctor Alterio, Norma Aleandro and Chunchunha Villafañe. The film follows a well-to-do couple, Alicia and Roberto, torn apart by the tortures, murders and disappearances of Argentina's so-called Dirty War, five years after the fall of the regime.
Alicia, blissfully unaware of much of what has happened under Argentina's dictatorial regime, becomes curious about her adopted daughter's origins and biological parents, and tries to uncover the truth about where she came from. However, Roberto – who has close ties to the government – tells her to drop her inquiry. She meets an old friend, Ana, who had suddenly left without saying goodbye. Alicia learns that Ana was taken away and tortured before being sent into exile. From Ana she also learns that there were many pregnant women among the prisoners, whose babies were taken away and given to high-ranking government families... families just like her own.
Unable to forget this bit of information, she begins in-depth political and personal research and eventually finds Gaby's biological grandmother, who reveals who the girl's parents are, as well as the fact that they disappeared during the campaigns of state-sponsored violence. Alicia is also shocked upon uncovering that her husband played a major role in the repression and violent actions of the regime.
Her political and emotional awakening ultimately leads to a major dispute between Alicia, who can't get past what she has uncovered, and Roberto, who wants her to forget about it all and move on.