Uno

Running time: 103 mins

There is no bottom David discovers, as his already fragile world crumbles beneath him. Enduring life with his terminally ill father, mentally retarded brother and estranged mother, David's only escape is the gym where he works and acts as peacekeeper, taking the fall for every misstep of the gym owner's son, a small-time dealer.

Life changes when the police, after raiding the gym, force David to squeal before releasing him to attend his father's deathbed. Now vetted by his former friends and fingered by the gang who wants its drug money, David is drawn closer to his family and struggles to hold together his last shard of stability. Somehow, despite all the betrayals, David endures each new assault, and we hang on to the glimmer of hope that he'll survive in the end.

The title alludes to the card game in which players whittle their hands down to a solitary card. Reminiscent of Amores Perroes in its frank portrayal of urban entrapment, Uno is a dark, gritty film that isn't squeamish about portraying the most visceral emotional or physical trauma.

Aksel Hennie (Jonny Vang and Buddy; both in Cinequest 2004) is one of Norway?s leading actors and gives a performance worthy of any Oscar nominee, and he assumes the role of director and writer as if he has been doing it for decades.

Tim Shively

MAVERICK COMPETITION