Tatiana Huezo’s drama Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego and Alonzo Ruizpalacios’ A Cop Movie / Una película de policías, both Netflix releases, were the big winners at the 64th edition of the Ariel Awards, announced at a ceremony last night in Mexico City and presented by the Mexican Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences.
Liberally adapted from Jennifer Clement's eponymous 2014 novel, Prayers for the Stolen won in seven categories, out of 19 nominations, including for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Cinematography. The debut fiction by acclaimed director Huezo was Mexico’s official submission for International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards and was the winner of a Special Mention in the Un Certain Regard competition at the Cannes Film Festival.
Set in a solitary town nestled in the Mexican mountains, where the girls wear boyish haircuts and have hiding places underground, the film follows Ana and her two best friends who take over the houses of those who have fled and dress up as women when no one is watching. In their own impenetrable universe, magic and joy abound; meanwhile, their mothers train them to flee from those who turn them into slaves or ghosts. But one day, one of the girls doesn't make it to her hideout in time.
Ruizpalacios’ A Cop Movie won seven Ariel Awards, from ten nominations, including for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Documentary. Set in the Mexican police force, the film tells the story of Teresa and Montoya, together known as “the love patrol.” In the thoroughly original and unpredictable documentary, Ruizpalacios plays with the boundaries of nonfiction and immerses the audience in the human experience of police work within a dysfunctional system. A Cop Movie propels the viewer into an unusual cinematic space, giving voice to one of Mexico’s—and the world’s—most controversial institutions.
Other Ariel winners include Nudo Mixteco by Ángeles Cruz for Best First Film, and Adrián González for Breakthrough Performance in Summer White / Blanco de verano by Rodrigo Ruiz Patterson.
