This Chilean take on the Ugly Betty meme features professional lingerie model Barbara Mori as Helena, an architect whose beauty and full figure mark her as a constant target for bird-dogging male chauvinist pigs. Tired of the relentless come-ons, Helena ups sticks from Santiago in favor of backwoods Valparaiso, where she disguises herself as plain-jane Amanda. Hired at a new firm on the basis of her skills alone, Amanda befriends colleague Marcelo (Marcelo Mazzarello), who proceeds to pour his heart out to his ugly duckling platonic gal pal. Will true love blossom on the drafting tables or will things take a turn for the awkward should Marcelo discover boring Amanda is actually glamorous Helena? Pretendiendo ultimately can't break out of the strictures of the rom-com genre, but it makes a good effort, and is worth watching for the two leads, who both deliver excellent performances. It's now mooted for an English language remake-beware!
