Queen of Diamonds (1991)

The alienation and the emotional scars of a woman working in a Las Vegas casino; a terrible threat looming over the horizon; these are the leitmotifs of Nina Menkes’s tour de force, a film that defies its low budget constraints to tap into the essence of American culture. Menkes described the Queen of Diamonds as a ‘minimalist, post-pop, emotional X-ray of the United States,’ as well as ‘a western without horses,’ while the Los Angeles Times hailed it as one of the best films of 1991.

Director-Screenwriter-Cinematography: Nina Menkes
Editing: Nina Menkes, Tinka Menkes
Cast: Tinka Menkes, Jeff Douglas

USA, Color
English, 77’
Format: 35mm