Twenty-year-old Alex lives on the edge of a big city somewhere in Basque country. She tries to make ends meet for herself and her unemployed family by selling guns. The ever- present danger of killing or being killed has become an essential part of her everyday existence. The fact that she is the only bread-winner means she is always quarrelling with her father. Alex is secretly in love with Javi, a young kid in the gang she belongs to. But he isn’t interested in her. She’s the only girl in the gang and is treated by the others as one of the boys. They are all young outsiders; the rhythm of their life is determined by the sound of their favourite music. The lack of love and the presence of danger mean Alex has to choose. Either she must carry on or save her skin by separating herself from her surroundings. She only has a day and a half to decide. Salto al vacio, in other words ‘a jump into the void’, is a very clever and mature début film by Daniel Calparsoro, who is only 26. The development of the aggressive, messed up Alex, who very cautiously attempts to be more vulnerable and to give and take love, has been portrayed with great subtlety. The violence, the music and the use of language in the film are however hard as nails.
