If Pedro Almodovar got his hands on it’s-the-pictures-that-got-smaller Gloria Swanson and mixed in some of the screen-shattering work of Susan Tyrrell in the 70s, he’d land near the titular performance in PACARRETE, a radiant ode to the all-consuming power of dance, with a side of prickly class aspiration.
PACARRETE is based on a true story--presumably until it lapses into complete fantasy in its final moments. A virtuoso sequence underpinned by an anthemic Tina Turner hit literalizes the notion of expressing grief through interpretive dance. And to give you a sense of just how bold the central performance by its 80-year-old star really is: come for the nudity, stay for the bodily functions.
Co-presented by San Francisco Dance Film Festival.