The Holy Girl

(2005) dir Lucretia Martel w/Mercedes Morán, María Alche, Carlos Belloso [103 min; 35mm]

Argentinian director Martel’s stunning second feature is almost a female flip of LOLITA. When teenage Amalia (Alche), already struggling with awakening sexuality and religious fervor, is casually violated by a middle-aged man, he becomes a fixation for her. As Amalia becomes something of a stalker, Martel also makes the audience complicit – with the camera acting as spy on the girl, her family, and the residents of the provincial hotel where it is set.