Synopsis: Luisa is 25 years old and fighting a heroin addiction. Having escaped the city she finds herself seeking repose in a fading beach resort that rests on the lush seaside hills of Veracruz, Mexico. Inhabitants and conversations are sparse, but Luisa finds a quiet companionship with 50-year-old local Salomon, an alcoholic widower who spends his days smoking marijuana. The film's breathtaking landscape, captured by talented cinematographer Luisa Tillinger, is a slice of serenity, even though the village's permanent residents grapple with the reality of paradise's temporal promises. It is an interesting and apt backdrop for this less-than-ordinary love story between two people battling dependency. Director Yulene Olaizola, a rising Mexican directing talent who first gained attention with her award-winning documentary Shakespeare and Victor Hugo's Intimacies, collaborates with co-screenwriter Fernando del Razo and actress Luisa Pardo to create a rich and sincere narrative debut that subverts the typical addiction tale and highlights the subtle yet powerful performances by Pardo and Salomón Hernández. --Genna Terranova [Courtesy of The Tribeca Film Festival]
Set in the breathtaking beach environment of Veracruz (Mexico) at a near dilapidated resort-of-sorts, "Artificial Paradises" is a terrific minmimalist experience centering on the unlikely relationship between middle-aged grounds worker Salomón (Salomón Hernández) and young heroin abuser Luisa (Luisa...
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