“Hurricane Maria was like a big broom with bleach that swept up everything, and we were finally able to see how screwed we were,” declares a woman in Landfall. When the deadly Category 5 hurricane reached Puerto Rico in 2017, the US territory was already 72 billion dollars in debt and crippled by years of severe austerity measures. Two years later, hundreds of thousands poured onto the streets of San Juan to demand the resignation of Governor Ricardo Rosselló and the departure of the colonialist junta in charge of budget cuts. Travelling throughout the island, director Cecilia Aldarondo, herself from the diaspora, attempts to understand what happened in that period of time. Meeting with afflicted locals and opportunistic newcomers, she examines the interpenetration of the environmental and economic crises. Her must-see film offers a sharp-eyed analysis of disaster capitalism and a stirring portrait of trauma and resistance. Charlotte Selb
This film includes a pre-recorded Q&A.
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MEDIA COVERAGE
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