Stars At Noon (2022) ****

Enigmatic, mesmerizing and sensuous drama set in totalitarian Nicaragua during the Covid lockdowns. A masterpiece of "exotic/erotic" cinema. But instead of an Emmanuelle-style fantasy, we have a realistic portrait of a real woman forced to humiliate herself and to sell her body in order to survive and escape from a totalitarian nightmare. Winner of the Grand Prix du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival and Margaret Qualley's most memorable acting performance to date.