Manuel Betancourt For a film that spends so much of its runtime capturing its subjects in crowded medium shots and discomforting closeups, “One in a Thousand” (“Las mil y una”) feels very much like a cartographic exploration.
Its assured sense of place comes not from establishing shots nor helpful geographical markers but from the specificity of its stories and the authenticity of its performers.Writer-director Clarisa Navas has set her film in “Las Mil,” a housing project in the Corrientes province of Argentina where she grew up.
Built in the 1970s, the now-dilapidated buildings serve as a stark reminder of the kind of populations that are left behind to rot.