Paradised gained

Shot in an abandoned chapel in the tourist town of Pardo, near Buenos Aires, the film boasts ravishing cinematography redolent of renaissance masterpieces and is inspired by creole surrealism.

It follows the story of a women’s bocce ball match attended by mysterious visitors, such as Fabian Serna, a champion performer of malambo – the traditional Argentine dance based on the fandango. Just as the game is hotting up, players and spectators are distracted by a heavenly chanting and are lured out to a golden field to witness some celestial lute playing and a Spanish folk song performed by musicians Virginia Correa Dupuy and Vida Spinetta.

Though slightly incomprehensible, the film is mesmerising and leads the viewer on a varied and fascinating journey. It’s the second collaboration between Corera and Sadaels, the first being the tale of lost love, Un Amor Verdadero.