Solitary middle-aged man Armando (Alfredo Castro, “No”) embarks on a fraught association with a young local hoodlum called Elder (Luis Silva) in Lorenzo Vigas’ Venezuelan sort-of thriller.

Carefully composed, shot in the usual gray and mustard digital palette, the film deals in small slivers of information. Armando hates his father, probably due to abuse, but that’s left unsaid.

Elder starts by beating up Armando, then becomes eager to sleep with him. Pace and mood are equally glum, and so much information is withheld that the twisty relationship can’t build much tension.

The final third picks up somewhat, and the closing scene has all the energy and intrigue that the rest of the film lacks. But it is hard to comprehend how this won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 2015.