Brazilian Film Takes Top Prize at Festival in Havana

The Brazilian tragicomedy “Me, You, Them” (Yo, tu, ellos), a film about a woman living with three husbands at the same time, took the main prize Friday at the prestigious annual Havana film festival.

Director Andrucha Waddington’s film about a woman in a desolate town in northeast Brazil was lauded by the festival jury, chaired by Chilean writer Ariel Dorfman, for its “exceptional mastery and beauty.”

“Life Is Like That” (Asi es la vida) by Mexican director Arturo Ripstein also received a special mention in the first-prize category at the 22nd International Festival of New Latin American Cinema, a highlight of Latin America’s cultural calendar.

The second main prize, or “Coral” as festival organizers call their awards, was taken by an Argentine-Spanish melodrama, “Nuts for Love” (Nueces para el amor), directed by Argentina’s Alberto Lecchi. It tells the story of a frustrated love affair against the tense political backdrop of Argentina’s Dirty War.

The prize for best actress was shared by Brazil’s Regina Case, for the “dignity and simplicity” of her role in “Me, You, Them” and Spain’s Ariadna Gil for the “sobriety and maturity” of her part in “Nuts for Love.”

The third Coral went to an Argentine film, “Waiting for the Messiah” (Esperando al Mesias), by Daniel Burman, “for its ability to interweave stories relating to the search for multiple identity.”

The jury also awarded a special prize to director Ripstein for “continuing to discover and propose new forms of cinematographic expression” in “Life Is Like That,” an adaptation of the Greek tragedy “Medea” set in Mexico.

Gianfranco Brero in Peru’s “Red Ink” (Tinta roja) and Julio Jung in Chile’s “Coronation” (Coronacion) shared the prize for best male actor.

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s Mexican story “Dog Loves” (Amores perros) took an award for best first film “for a strong and complex first work which makes an impact with its hyper-realist vision of an urban world almost without escape,” the jury said.