The winner of the Best Domestic Feature at this month's New York International Latino Film Festival, the erotic thriller Under My Nails, is directed by Ari Manuel Cruz from a screenplay penned by lead actress Kisha Tikina Burgos, and produced by Cruz, Burgos, Andrei Nemcik (editor) and Enrique Julia.
The Puerto Rican/NYC La Teta Productions' psychological thriller, described as "colorful and musical, and set within the cultural aspects of some Caribbean groups in New York," stars Burgos as a nail salon tech named Solimar, who obsesses over the "violent sexual practices" of her Dominican neighbor Roberto (Ivan Camilo) and his Haitian-Dominican wife Perpetue, played by Afro-Cuban actress Dolores Pedro.
Antonio Pantojas, Rosie Berrido and Maite Bonilla also star. Under My Nails premiered at the San Juan International Film Festival in Puerto Rico last year, where it garnered the Jury and Best Actress Awards. The film also screened at several film festivals in Cuba, Dominican Republic and France. Under will have its theatrical release in Puerto Rico this October 25.
Full synopsis:
In New York, Solimar a Puerto Rican woman who works in a “nail salon” becomes obsessed with the violent sexual practices of her new neighbors, a Dominican man Roberto and his Haitian-Dominican wife Perpetue. Solimar, as a voyeur of their intimate life, one day witnesses a particularly brutal encounter. Perpetue disappears after that. Apparently she went back to the Dominican Republic to see her children.
In her absence Solimar and Roberto develop an intense and violent sexual relationship. For the first time in a very long time, Solimar feels a connection with her innermost desires and true identity. The fact that it’s wrong makes it right for her. She lost both her parents when she was very young. Supposedly, her mother abandoned them causing her father to commit suicide. She hasn’t been back to Puerto Rico in a long time and canceled any connection with her past.
The sudden appearance of an unidentified woman’s dead body in the Bronx River awakes her suspicion. Solimar has fallen in love with Roberto and what could be a threat for her it’s transformed into an erotic drive that she can’t stop. She has to decide whether to confront Roberto or live with the most terrible doubt.
I'm very intrigued by the trailer. Watch below:
