Jennifer Lopez brings 1950s Hollywood ‘diva’ to Sundance indie fest

AFP | Los Angeles

Email : editor@newsofbahrain.com

Jennifer Lopez brought a heady blend of 1950s Hollywood musical and gritty prison drama to Sundance with her new film “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” which earned a standing ovation from the indie movie festival.

The musical film, about two mismatched cellmates who form an unlikely intimate bond during Argentina’s 1970s military dictatorship, was the hottest ticket at this year’s Sundance gathering, which typically focuses on smaller arthouse and documentary fare.

“It’s about how love can cure any divide. These two people who couldn’t be more different in this cell together -- doesn’t matter their sexuality, their political beliefs. None of it,” Lopez told AFP, on the red carpet.

“It’s exactly the kind of story that we need to see right now,” she said.

Based on the Broadway adaptation of Argentine author Manuel Puig’s novel, “Kiss of the Spider Woman” is directed by Bill Condon.

Condon is best-known for blockbusters like “Dreamgirls,” “Chicago” and the final “Twilight” films, but earned his big break at Sundance with 1998’s Oscar-winning “Gods and Monsters.”

He told AFP that Lopez’s involvement undoubtedly helped the film procure financing, but that he also “knew she was the only person who could play this part.”

“Because it’s a diva. We don’t have that many divas in our lives. I don’t know whether it’s gone out of fashion,” he said.

Diego Luna plays Valentin, a tough and idealistic political prisoner who is experiencing horrific torture by the regime, but refuses to give up his revolutionary secrets.

He finds himself forced to bunk up with Molina (Tonatiuh), an LGBTQ convict who has secretly been sent to coax information from him.

Molina starts regaling Valentin with the plot of his favorite Hollywood musical -- shown in extensive flashbacks, starring Lopez as the glamorous diva Ingrid Luna, which begin to interweave with the prison narrative.