There’s a moment about midway through Sirāt, Oliver Laxe’s searing desert rave thriller, that instantly sucks all the air out of the room. This is precisely what happened when I saw the Oscar-nominated Spanish film at the New York Film Festival in September: a pall settled over my audience as soon as it dawned on everyone what was about to happen. A few shocked gasps slipped out, and you could almost collectively hear everyone’s hearts stutter for a split second. Then all hell breaks loose, and Sirāt transforms from a dusty desert odyssey into a horrifying descent into hell. To tell you anymore would give away the whole thing, but I can stress to you that Sirāt is worth seeing knowing nothing else. | 
