Still at the peak of the space race and the Cold War in early-sixties Baltimore, Elisa Esposito, a forlorn and lonely mute woman, has a mundane daily routine as a night-time janitor in a top-secret underground research facility. With literally only two friends, Zelda, the solicitous co-worker who does all the talking for both of them, and Giles, her ageing painter neighbour, Elisa will find herself thrilled with the unexpected arrival of an Amazonian Amphibian Man at the cavernous corporation. Kept on a short leash inside a confined water tank, the mysterious scaly creature is, inevitably, the centre of attention; however, as an empathetic and almost mystical bond begins to timidly bloom between species, the very survival of this rare specimen lies in the hands of an improbable and frail saviour. But can there be a future when you are trapped?—Nick Riganas