Icelandic documentarian Olaf de Fleur openly blends fact and fiction in <i>The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela</i>, the partially true story of Filipino transsexual Raquela Rios, who drifts from prostitution to the more lucrative realm of Internet "ladyboy porn," then winds up moving to Europe when one of her patrons propositions her via e-mail. Much of the dialogue in <i>Queen Raquela</i> is improvised—and some of it delivered directly into the camera, interview-style—and a lot of the footage was shot in on the fly, with handheld or hidden cameras. But de Fleur does impose a narrative on this vérité exercise, in an attempt to concoct a kind of postmodern, grown-up fairytale: a Cinderella story for the reality-TV age. <i>Queen Raquela</i>'s plotty elements don't always work: The acting in the story-driving scenes sometimes comes off as amateurish, and the circumstances that send Rios halfway around the world seem contrived.
- 9/26/2008
- by Noel Murray
- avclub.com
New York -- Here! Films has acquired North American rights to the transsexual drama "The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela," winner of the Teddy Award for best feature at the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival.
Icelandic writer/director Olaf de Fleur's feature is partly based on the life of lead actress Raquela Rios. In the film, her character falls into a life of prostitution in the Philippines before her dream of meeting a husband in Paris somehow leads her to an Iceland fish factory and a new career in porn.
Here! sister company Regent Releasing will launch the film's platform Sept. 26 and this fall. The subtitled film contains English, Filipino and Icelandic dialogue.
The deal was negotiated by Regent's Mark Reinhart with Xyz Films' Nate Bolotin and Cicala Filmworks' Stefan Schaefer on behalf of the director.
Icelandic writer/director Olaf de Fleur's feature is partly based on the life of lead actress Raquela Rios. In the film, her character falls into a life of prostitution in the Philippines before her dream of meeting a husband in Paris somehow leads her to an Iceland fish factory and a new career in porn.
Here! sister company Regent Releasing will launch the film's platform Sept. 26 and this fall. The subtitled film contains English, Filipino and Icelandic dialogue.
The deal was negotiated by Regent's Mark Reinhart with Xyz Films' Nate Bolotin and Cicala Filmworks' Stefan Schaefer on behalf of the director.
- 8/27/2008
- by By Gregg Goldstein
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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