Unfriend (2014)

A 15-year-old boy stands on the edge of the roof of a building site; his hand playfully reaches into the air. Beneath David lies the city and behind him his friend Jonathan who is two years older and looks on, captivated by the sight of his friend. David lives with his grandmother who divides her time between housework and TV shows. Warm and humorous, she supports her grandchild’s openly gay life, but he prefers to withdraw into his Facebook world at every opportunity. David would do anything for Jonathan and openly shares his feelings with online friends. When Jonathan posts images of himself with a new lover on Christmas Eve David struggles to overcome his powerlessness with a feverish obsession to win back his friend and soon finds himself in the grip of both real and virtual aspects of his unstable personality. Powerful tracking shots follow David through his manic imaginations, sparkling Christmas illuminations, crowded shopping malls and virtual alleys underneath a bell jar of repressed emotions. With an assured hand, Altarejos melds real and virtual worlds into a sensual, electrifying atmospheric arena that confronts us with his protagonist’s deep wounds.