Una Noche Cuba, UK, USA 2012 – 90min.

Movie Rating

Una Noche

Valérie Lobsiger
Movie Rating: Valérie Lobsiger

Three young people escape from Cuba in a makeshift boat in the hopes of a better life in Miami.

In Havana, Lila, whose family is drifting, spends happy times with her twin brother Elio. Then Elio meets Raul, who works in the kitchen of the restaurant where Elio is also employed. Impulsive and easily angered, Raul does everything he can to find AIDS medication for his mother. To lead the life in the fast lane that he dreams of, Raul hatches a plan to escape to Miami (90 miles from Cuba) and gets Elio involved, who's reluctant to leave his family. Hunted by the police for having allegedly assaulted a tourist, Raul is in a hurry to get his makeshift boat going. When Elio fixes it, Lila comes along and, fighting her fear of the water, sails off with them...

This excellent debut by young director Lucy Mulloy, who managed to get authorization to film in Havana, offers a chance to dive into this colorful but decaying city, where joie de vivre and misery occur side by side. A city where stores are empty but everything can be bought. The young actors, all amateurs, put their souls into their work. When the movie was shown at the Tribeca Film Festival, the actors playing the twins were unable to attend – they were in Miami, seeking asylum.

25.01.2013

4

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