La Zona

Forget ‘broken Britain’; Mexico is in tatters. This slick, serious-minded tale of upper-crust vigilantes protecting their gated community at any cost is a nihilistic but thoughtful portrait of a country divided . Young director Rodrigo Plá has an eye for contrasts: his camera salivates over the posh houses of ‘The Zone’ before rising above barbed wire to reveal shanty towns beyond.

Three teenagers infiltrate this island, setting off a chain of events that see the residents voting to pursue one of the visitors, little Miguel (Alan Chávez), with no recourse to the authorities. When the police try to intervene, they fail; the system is in favour of the ‘The Zone’. Thankfully this turns out to be more than a chase movie with a conscience: Plá and writer Laura Santullo contrast the experience of Miguel with Alejandro (Daniel Tovar), a rich kid with  a conflicted relationship with his background. ‘La Zona’ brandishes its allegorical badge subtly but effectively.