Mala Noche (1985)

Why is it that directors' early works are so often superior to their subsequent output? Why is it that the debut film, often made with a tiny fraction of the budget, no famous actors and inexperienced crew, often proves to be the director's apex in terms of creativity and originality? For Aronofsky it was 'Pi'; for Lynch, 'Eraserhead'; for Resnais, 'Hiroshima Mon Amour'; and for Gus Van Sant, it was 'Mala Noche'. Like the directors listed above, Van Sant has made some very good films throughout his career: 'My Own Private Idaho', 'Elephant' and, most recently, 'Paranoid Park', have all been exceptional. However, 'Mala Noche' stands at least equal, if not superior to the rest, featuring some excellent black & white cinematography, a fine performance by the leads and, most importantly, a frank, sympathetic, while completely unpatronising look at homosexual desire. Like some of the best films, little happens in the story: Walt has a crush on an attractive Mexican boy, but finds his advances rejected, so has to make do with a kind of friendship (and, sometimes, sex) with the friend of his object of desire. To say this is a film about unrequited love does it injustice, because it is far superior to most films that deal with such an issue. This is nowhere near a Hollywood film where the boy chases the girl, instead replacing that 2D cliche with a 3-dimensional portrayal of real life. Highly recommended.