The Cannes Film Festival in its 2023 edition brought a big surprise to the Mexican director Amat Escalante, who returned after 10 years to this great event.
But this time the feeling was totally different, as he arrived to be applauded after conquering international critics for his new film “Lost at night.”
He had already performed 10 years ago with his tape Heli, which also led to multiple applause and awards at the same time.
“Lost in the Night” received a standing ovation for several minutes after finishing its screening in the Debussy Hall of the Cannes Palace of Festivals and Congresses complex.
The specialized critics gave a “unanimous ovation”, according to Daniela Michelle, Founder and General Director of the Morelia International Film Festival (FICM).
In this new film, Amat recounts the forced disappearance of a woman activist and the desperate investigation of her adolescent son who is looking for justice. His search will lead him to influence the class difference in Mexico and the dark secrets of powerful people..
Various critics pointed out that, in this film, violence in Mexico is portrayed from the crudest angle. Where he made a mixture of famous actors, social networks and the mining industry to recount the tragedy of the disappeared. What caught our attention is that this tape did not enter the competition.
“There is a way that is more common in the cinema of filming violence and I think that what I try is to approach it from another more crude angle, an angle from which we are not so used to seeing the act of violence when it happens, for me violence is rather the opposite of being excited. It’s very sad and I’m interested in showing it in that more honest way.”
The filmmaker began to think about “Lost at night” from the Ayotzinapa case, in which 43 students disappeared in 2014. Although time passed and he made another intermediate film, he continued with the idea. It is shot in Guanajuato, one of the most violent in the country, and where Escalante himself resides.
It should be remembered that for his film “Heli” 10 years ago, with this he fought to win the “Palma de Oro”, which tells the story of a teenager who falls in love with a young policeman involved in a case of money diversion. Back then she took the award for best direction.
Keep reading:
Johnny Depp’s teeth draw the attention of fans at the Cannes Film Festival: “They are rotten”
The short film “Strange way of life”, by Pedro Almodóvar, will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival
The film “Jeanne du Barry”, starring Johnny Depp, will open the 2023 Cannes Film Festival