The beautiful Peruvian film “Contracorriente” (“Undertow”) is available on DVD starting today!

The sexy, haunting love story Contracorriente (Undertow in English) was a real highlight of last year’s Long Beach Q Film Festival where I saw it on opening night.

By that time, the film had won the 2010 Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival and was a big hit at Outfest.

It is set in a tiny Peruvian seaside village and becomes available on DVD starting today. I highly recommend you rent or buy it.

Here’s a synopsis: Miguel (Cristian Mercado), a young fisherman, and his beautiful bride, Mariela (Tatiana Astengo), are about to welcome their first child. But Miguel harbors a scandalous secret. He’s in love with Santiago (Manolo Cardona), a painter, who is ostracized by the town because he’s gay. After a tragic accident occurs, Miguel must choose between sentencing Santiago to eternal torment or doing right by him and, in turn, revealing their relationship to Mariela—and the entire village.

This moving film is written and directed by Javier Fuentes-León and there was a serious campaign to snag an Academy Award nomination for outstanding foreign film.

The effort wasn’t successful but that takes nothing away from this movie which was beautifully acted and gorgeous to look at.

I was so deeply moved by the courage of Miguel who may have been a coward through much of the film, but in the end he finds his truth and once he does, he risks all to live it. Isn’t that the story with so many people?

Below is the film’s trailer: