SEBASTIAN Lelio has a fondness for profiles. Seemingly every other shot in the Chilean writer-director’s “The Sacred Family” is a close-up of somebody’s face, shot from the side by a shaky hand-held camera. The visual trick adds to the film’s overall sense of anxiety.
It’s Easter weekend, and an architect (Sergio Hernandez) finds himself playing host to a group that includes his college-student son (Nestor Cantillana), the younger man’s hedonistic girlfriend Sofia (Patricia Lopez), and two gay lovers. They’re joined by a family friend, a young woman (Macarena Teke) who, for some vague reason, prefers not to speak.
While most houseguests might bring wine or flowers for their host, Sofia contributes Valium, Ecstasy and cocaine. It therefore comes as no big surprise that all involved spend most of the weekend getting high and having sex, sometimes in unexpected combinations.
“The Sacred Family,” Lelio’s feature debut, unfolds over three days, the length of time it took to shoot the story. The director says most of the dialogue was improvised, and I suspect the sex and drug-taking are real. The finale is as unexpected as it is bizarre.
In Spanish, with English subtitles. Running time: 99 minutes. Not rated (drugs, sex, violence). At the Quad, 13th Street, between Fifth and Sixth avenues. – Musetto