Our Time

Since the release of his bold and stunning first feature, Japón, filmmaker Carlos Reygadas has proven to be in a class of his own. His films are hypnotic medleys of soulfulness, beauty, provocation, and existential questioning. Reygadas's latest, Our Time, is his most personal and courageous to date, casting himself and his wife (Natalia López) in the lead roles as he explores a married couple's relationship in crisis.

Juan and Ester live on their remote cattle ranch with their children. It's a very calm, private existence — one they both want to protect. The couple has until now enjoyed an open relationship but when Ester falls in love with an American horse trainer (Phil Burgers) who works in the area, she stops sharing details of her affair with Juan. He begins compulsively spying on his wife. The pain of not being in control forces him to question their relationship and he loses himself in turbid, jealous emotions. It's fascinating when you realize that the director is effectively filming himself secretly watching his real wife's affair.

Gorgeously shot, the film ruminates on life at the ranch, the joy of seeing the children grow up outside, and the beauty and the mess our lives can so quickly become. Through this raw exploration of a couple at a moment of crisis, Reygadas creates a story that is somehow both quotidian yet epic in scope.

DIANA SANCHEZ