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A young Mexican girl's dreams of marrying a handsome police cadet are dashed as she and her family contend with drug-related gang violence in this gritty drama that won Amat Escalante the Best Director award at the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival. As his beloved wife makes a slow recovery following a problematic birth, small-town factory worker Heli (Armando Espitia) strives to support his family working long shifts at the same plant where his father works. Meanwhile, Heli's naïve, 12-year-old sister Estela (Andrea Vergara) has started to fall for older police cadet Beto (Juan Eduardo Palacios), who is frequently singled out for harassment by his brutal superiors. Smitten, Estela allows Beto to stash some drugs on the family's property, a mistake that soon threatens to bring one of Mexico's most dangerous narcotics gangs directly to their doorstep.