I had seen other Arturo Ripstein films before this one: you can say Ripstein films are unusual in their scripts and some might say downright weird in the treatment of their themes, but they are always hypnotic to watch. Their plot is often, well, a train wreck: you feel the tension and you know nothing will end well.( Tennessee Williams plays function within a similar mix of explosive passions and imminent doom). Everything in a Ripstein film is baroque: dialogues, themes and colors. This movie is all that, and more, because it introduces us to a rich cast of characters in a restricted setting, and there are significant political undertones to the tale. But the most fascinating part of this film is of course this gentle transvestite who never once drops the pretense that he is a woman, in public or in private ( The actor who plays him/her is AMAZING, and remarkably believable against all odds.) I think it is a solid story -with a great soundtrack of old Mexican songs- that has a lot to say about machismo and the plight of women in a society that values only male "qualities".
Review of The Place Without Limits
