La Zona (DVD)

It is said that great civilisations are not brought down from the outside, but corrode and die from within. The same appears to be true of small communities in La Zona, a slick exposition of paranoia and moral decay that draws unexpected parallels with The Beach, another film dealing with imploding society. The society in question in this Mexican production is the one which resides inside the Zone of the title. All neatly-trimmed verdant lawns and gleaming streets, la Zona is a picture of suburban utopia inside a secure walled complex keeping the rest of Mexico City's sprawling masses out. Watched over by a network of CCTV cameras, the residents ...  Read the complete review

Movie Only Review ----------------------- Mexican director Rodrigo Pla takes us on a nightmare journey through the reality of contemporary Mexico in his first feature film La Zona. Pla dishes up generous references to modern cinema history, from Fernando Meirelles's multi award winning City of God (2002) going right back to Arthur Penn's The Chase (1996). La Zona was a hit at nine film festivals and picked up the Luigi de Laurentiis Award at the Venice Film Festival and the International Critics' Award (FIPRESCI) at the Toronto International Film Festival. The zone that gives the film its name is a wealthy enclave in Mexico City fenced off from ...  Read the complete review

I added this film to my rental list based on a review written by Ailran a couple of months ago, it sounded right up my street. I have to say it is a brilliant film, having watched it this weekend - so thanks Ailran, I wouldn't have known anything about it if it wasnt for your review! This is a mexican film, directed by Rodrigo Pla and released in 2007. In the UK it pretty much went straight to DVD but it is well worth hunting down and watching, it is one of those films which really makes you think. Cast ------ Virtual unknowns except for Carlos Bardem, brother of Javier. Daniel Tovar - Alejandro Alan Chavez - ...  Read the complete review

La Zona is a Mexican film, with subtitles of course, about Miguel and Alejandro. One is a poor kid who lives in poverty outside a secured estate, called La Zona, that only the privileged can enter and own houses in. The other lives in the estate, experiencing a life of luxury either unaware or not caring about the plight of those outside his contained area. One fateful stormy night they are destined to meet and discover that there is more outside what both of them consider their worlds. A blast of wind causes a large billboard to crash into the wall surrounding La Zona, leaving it breachable. Quick to capitalise three men, or boy in Miguel's case, climb ...  Read the complete review