Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo)

Shot guerilla-style in 14 days in the Bronx, Joel Alfonso Vargas’ debut feature is a one of the most visually striking movies of the year. A rough-and-tumble, sun-dappled stateside kin to the life-on-the-margins tales of Andrea Arnold, Mad Bills to Pay is seen through the bleary eyes of Rico, a 19-year-old Dominican-American hustler who’s content to coast on life’s simple pleasures: video games, smoking W**d, and chasing girls, ad infinitum. He lives with his mother, who works nights as a nurse, and bankrolls his lifestyle by illegally shilling homemade “nutties” (colorful cocktails of rum, vodka, and juice) on the beach. But when Destiny, his teenage girlfriend, crashes at his place with his family, it’s only a matter of time before his rowdy, carefree days come spiraling down, and he’s forced to take on responsibilities he’s not equipped to handle. Mad Bills to Pay won the Sundance NEXT Special Jury Award for its great ensemble cast of mostly first-time actors.