Ruby in Paradise (2013)
Ruby in Paradise references a film by the same title from the early 90s, set in Florida. The screenshot images from the film were found on the internet and were then turned into postcards, in contrast with the standard idyllic images of the sender’s vacation spot. The format was used nostalgically, how we used to wait for postcards to arrive as they move slowly through the post office towards the receiver.
Ruby in Paradise won the 1993 Grand Jury Prize for Drama at the Sundance Film Festival. It retraces the story of a young women played by Ashley Judd who decides to move to Florida in the low season. Her struggle through love, work and the daily life of a young women in a paradoxical paradise place reveals the fragility of a women trying to be free.
I saw the film in 1993 and it reminded me of my time in Florida, escaping the Lebanese war by visiting relatives in the 80s. A strange but similar world to the Lebanese beach resorts that I also spent time in when I was young. My connection to the film lays not only in the film set but also the struggles that a woman has with love, work and daily life.