Una Mujer Fantastica (aka A Fantastic Woman) (2017)

After her much older lover (Francisco Reyes) suddenly dies, a young transgender woman (Daniela Vega) finds the safety of her world shattered. Without his protection, she must now face the hostility of a culture not receptive to transgender persons. Directed by Sebastian Lelio (GLORIA), this film is one of this year's Oscar nominees for foreign language film (it's from Chile). There's a lot to admire here. Notably, despite the discrimination she faces, the film does not portray Vega as a victim. We see the discrimination she has to put up with (and some of it is pretty horrific), but there's absolutely no self pity in her. Instead, we a woman finding her own voice and fighting back for the dignity owed her. Vega's expressive performance allows her a wide range of emotions and I admired the subtlety with which she let them filter out. My only quibble is ..... just what was in locker 181? I think I can guess but it would have been nice if Lelio let us in on it. There's an excellent underscore by Matthew Herbert. With Luis Gnecco, Aline Kuppenheim and Nicolas Saavedra.