Title: Leap Year
Starring: Monica Del Carmen, Gustavo Sanchez Parra, Marco Zapata
Director: Michael Rowe
Photography: Juan Manuel Sepulveda
Production: Alisarine Ducolomb
Costume: Adolfo Cruz Mateo
Editor: Oscar Figueroa Jara
Cert: 18
Length: 92 mins

Leap Year – a sexually perverse and frankly disturbing film debut by Michael Rowe – is not to be confused with the rom-com of the same name starring Amy Adams. Trust me; you do not want to get these films mixed up.

Monica Del Carmen is Laura a girl that spends all her time in doors. In fact the film doesn’t move outside of her grimy little flat for its entire running time of 92 minutes. She is very lonely and in an effort to quell these feelings she partakes in a number of one night stands with men who don’t care for her at all.

She thinks that things are about to change when she meeting Arturo (Gustavo Sanchez Parra) but their relationship develops along an increasingly violent path, taking in whipping, bondage and burning. It’s a relationship based upon humiliation and pain and whilst a film like Secretary examined this kind of relationship in a humorous manner, Leap Year, is just needlessly sadistic.

Personally I think that there is no place for this sort of film in cinemas. Sexual depravity and violence should not be seen on the screen.

This film won numerous awards. I can’t see why. I recommend avoiding it.