Gloria ****

Gloria is a woman of a certain age, single, divorced, with two grown children, who lives, works, and plays in Santiago, Chile. She is open to new experiences and loves to go to the clubs to dance and have a good time. At one of the clubs she meets Sergio, a retired naval officer, and they start to see each other more and more often.

In the course of the story we get to know Gloria very, very well. She is in virtually every shot as director Sebastián Lelio, who also co-wrote and co-edited, follows her everywhere. It's a demanding role played flawlessly by Paulina García, who so fully inhabits the character it feels like a documentary at times. Thank goodness she's likable and interesting.

Lelio's character study is close-up, unflinching, and non-judgmental. "Gloria" the movie, like Gloria the character, is warm, funny, wise, and sympathetic. "Gloria," in Spanish with English subtitles, is a portrait of a woman who becomes more than a single person in Santiago, while remaining uniquely herself. It's fantastic.