In a remote Costa Rican village, Clara, a woman believed to possess divine healing powers, lives under the repressive care of her pious elderly mother. Clara seeks solace in the natural world until the delicate order of her life is unexpectedly disrupted by a powerful sexual awakening, stirred by the arrival of her young niece’s handsome boyfriend. Desire ignites an unstoppable force, leading Clara on a tumultuous path to self-discovery and emancipation. This debut from Costa Rican director Nathalie Álvarez Mesén combines mud, moss and mysticism to arresting effect in this intimate and richly atmospheric film which also features stunning cinematography and an extraordinary lead performance by Wendy Chinchilla Araya.

In the mid-19th century, a mute woman (Holly Hunter) is sent to New Zealand along with her young daughter (Anna Paquin) and a prized piano for an arranged marriage to a wealthy landowner (Sam Neill), but is soon lusted after by a local plantation worker (Harvey Keitel). In 1993, the film won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, making Jane Campion the first female director to ever receive this award. It won three Academy Awards in March 1994: Best Actress for Holly Hunter, Best Supporting Actress for Anna Paquin and Best Original Screenplay for Jane Campion.