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La Botera – Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival 2021

Set within a neglected Buenos Aires neighborhood, La Botera follows Tati, a girl living alone with her father whilst navigating the challenges of adolescence.

Tati is already an independent woman. The opening scene shows her getting up, making breakfast, and getting ready for school on her own. We’d think she was living alone until the phone rings and Tati tries to wake up her previously unseen dad to answer it. She also sticks up for herself against the bullies at and outside of school in contrast to her childhood friend and confidently initiates conversation with people older than herself, such as a local boat rower she plays boyfriend and girlfriend with. However, she still retains the naivety of a young adult as shown in her awkwardly brash interactions with older kids and her friendship with another young neighborhood boy. The army games and relationship with the latter show she’s still connected to the young girl she’s slowly moving away from whilst the conversation with older kids represent the pull of her growing up.

Her coming of age feels a bit more hostile than others. It’s partly due to the bleak environment La Botera is set within – the constantly overcast skies and heavily clothed characters emphasize the cold unwelcoming environment. But the hostility is mostly due to the strained relationship she has with the dad she lives with alone. Unlike the gentler fathers in other father-daughter coming of age movies like Eighth Grade and Alba, Tati’s father offers little love and sympathy. He punishes and chastises her in almost every scene they share. Even when he has an opportunity to share a moment with her, such as when they’re watching football on TV, he gets annoyed as she apparently shouldn’t enjoy a ‘man’s game’. Maybe he’s been affected by the neighborhood they live in or his own experiences, or maybe his machismo just hides his fatherly insecurities. Either way, he contributes to the hostility of his daughter’s coming of age.

If you’re into coming of age stories set within a pretty bleak environment, La Botera is worth a watch. The close-up shots that follow Tati give it an edge that make it feel more real and personal than others.

Head to our LALIFF 2021 Hub for more reviews from the 20th edition of LALIFF.

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Beginning – A Mother’s Existential Crisis in a Targeted Outsider Community

Beginning Film Difficulty Ranking: 3

If you’re looking for a provocative transcendental film that captures a mother’s existential crisis you’ve come to the right place. Beginning uses slow pacing and a classic film look to shock Yana’s humble existence within a Jehovah’s Witness community in rural Georgia to the core. As her peace is shockingly disrupted, she’s forced to reevaluate her life as a mother as part of her remote community.

From: Georgia, Asia
Watch: Trailer, JustWatch, Mubi
Next: Fire Will Come, Loveless, Taming the Garden

Beginning – The Breakdown

Beginning follows Yana, a failed TV actress that has been ‘saved’ from the entertainment industry by her religious husband. She’s taken on some of the responsibilities that are expected of a mother in a Georgian Jehovah’s Witness community but always looks like an outsider within an outcast community. As religious extremists infringe on their world and corrupt, power hungry detectives stalk the group, Yana’s small bubble begins to collapse with shocking consequences.

The most noticeable feature of Beginning is the film’s look. It’s grounded in the foundations of transcendental film, using takes that linger longer than you expect. These long takes force you to watch minute of ‘dead time’ in which the character’s aren’t doing much. It’s also shot on 35mm at a 1:33 aspect ratio, which eschews width and the modern look of digital film for the narrower and grainier classic film. The character this adds to the film heightens the dramatic long takes by eliminating the distractions of a widescreen aspect ratio whilst giving the film a more epic, classical look. The long takes and film style both set up the shocking images that are scattered through the film (such as the church on fire). Within the context of the high amount of ‘dead time’ and narrower, grainier film, these images are even more of a surprise. They look more powerful, like a piece of classical art in an empty museum. Beginning practices serenity to make these few chaotic moments feel even more disruptive.

The film’s style mimics Yana’s inner self. Her life is mostly peaceful; working with the kids in the community and raising her son. This is emphasized in the many moments of peace on screen – such as a very long shot of her lying, eyes shut in the woods. However, these serene moments are punctuated by moments of chaos that cast doubt on her otherwise serene life, signifying her existential crisis. Despite her family ties, she appears more and more uncomfortable with her life as an outsider living within an outsider community. The uncertainty surrounding the terrorist attacks isolates the community even further from Georgian society whilst the suspicious detective isolates her even more from her family. She’s questioned by her husband and feels more distant from her son as he grows to resemble him. In her existential crisis, the chaotic moments, emphasized by the film’s style, offer her a twisted olive branch to free herself from both the community and her family.

What to Watch Next

If you’re looking for more brooding films that patiently unravel, check out Oliver Laxe’s Fire Will Come. It features the return of a notorious arsonist to his small hometown in Galicia where he is treated with scorn whilst he tries to adapt to his new life. You could also try Loveless by Andrey Zvyagintsev, a slow burn thriller that captures another mother uncertain about motherhood and her role within her family.

Or for more great films from Georgia, try Taming the Garden. It’s a slow paced documentary that highlights the wealth inequality in the country through a billionaires tree theft.

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The Best Families – Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival 2021

“Why work if we can do it for you?” are the words at the bottom of a billboard with a white woman floating on a pool that starts The Best Families. The billboard hangs ironically above Luzmilla and Peta’s humble neighborhood in the suburbs. We see it as they start their long commute to work, switching their barren neighborhood for two aristocratic family houses in central Lima.

The two families they work for are stereotypically snobby. They look down on Spanish people that don’t measure up to their lineage and direct plenty of snide comments at each other to try and establish their superiority. Their snobbery is the target of this satire. Today, at their birthday get-together, an unexpected bombshell throws the event into chaos as a long held secret involving both households, crossing class and race, is finally revealed.

Whilst the chaos is unfolding inside their upper class bubble, there’s also chaos outside. The city is being taken over by a mass protest. However, despite the news attention, these two elite families are completely oblivious of the protests. Aerial shots of their living complex (two large houses surrounded by green gardens) marks their position of privilege. Their complex is the only greenery in the shot, and it’s surrounded by cramped urban development and the many people protesting. The shots highlight the stark division between the privileged rich and the rest of the country. It also shows the bubble they live in – they’re not aware of the people outside their property because they don’t have to interact with them. This means that they’re also a bit out of touch with society, making the satire all the more funny.

The unfolding secret creates drama that reminded me of the family chaos in Knives Out. Just like a whodunnit, we want to keep watching to find out how each family member will react. After all, who doesn’t like laughing at the snobby rich? It’s always comforting to know that they have just as much drama in their family as the exploitative reality talk shows focusing on the underprivileged – and us. However, it does end with a small gut punch. Despite the big reveals and controversy the film exposes amongst the aristocratic family, the film ultimately ends on a book-ended shot of the maids carrying out the same life they started with. No matter what comes to light, the wealthy will always hold their power.

Head to our LALIFF 2021 Hub for more reviews from the 20th edition of LALIFF.

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Cargo – Presenting the Dark Side of The Bahamas

Cargo Film Difficulty Ranking: 2

In Kareem Mortimer’s Cargo a faltering fisherman turns to crime to pay for his mounting debt. This thriller presents a very different view of the Bahamas than the clear oceans the tourist board presents but is slowed down by a number of characters and clichéd subplots. However, if you’re a fan of slow thrillers or want to see the dark side of the Caribbean, this is worth a watch.

From: The Bahamas, North America
Watch: Trailer, Tubi, IMDb
Next: Sin Nombre, Maria Full of Grace, The Load

Cargo – The Breakdown

When you think of The Bahamas, you think of pristine beaches and crystal clear sea. It’s what the tourist board promotes to potential visitors year round. The picturesque islands are also what we’ve seen in films shot in The Bahamas such as the James Bond franchise. However, whilst the beaches are visible in Kareem Mortimer’s Cargo, the film focuses on the daily strife the locals and immigrants face. There’s no sign of tourists or an easy life.

It follows Kevin, a fisherman living in the city with his wife and aging mother. He’s had a privileged upbringing at a private boarding school, so he pays for his son to have the same privilege. However, the fees of the school, alongside the need to bring in support at home to take care of his mother dealing with dementia, pushes him into an insurmountable mountain of debt. Instead of pulling his son out of private school (and kicking his gambling habit), he assumes a life of crime to get his way out. Problem is, as per other ‘resorting to crime’ film plots, Kevin gets sucked in by the money, becomes a different person and gets a few more problems to add to those he started with. In this case it’s new girlfriends and dependents.

One thing that stands out with Kevin is that he’s white in a country that is 90% Black. Alongside the other white characters in this film – the School Bursar, Banker, and opportunistic Crime Lord – Kevin appears to live a privileged life. He has a nice house, sends his kid to private school, and has a car. In contrast, the main Black characters live in makeshift houses, struggle to get their kids an education, and use public transport. Even though his fishing isn’t bringing in enough money to pay his bills, he still finds himself in a better position than the Black characters of the movie. His failures are a sign of the total lack of opportunity in The Bahamas as it shows that both the privileged and unprivileged are struggling to get by.

Whilst Cargo highlights the inequality and lack of opportunity in The Bahamas well, Kevin’s slow spiral from friendly fisherman to “the devil” features too many subplots and characters. The three women in his life each come with their own story, slowing down the pace of the movie when it could do with a bit more energy. The clichéd conclusions of one of them feels like the over dramatic teen-orientated PSA’s that encourage you to not do drugs. The human-trafficking parts of the film are gripping, but are unfortunately never the film’s focus. This is all about Kevin and his ever increasing subplots.

What to Watch Next

Whilst Cargo focuses on the trafficker, there are a lot of great movies that focus on the people being trafficked. Some notable examples are:

Sin Nombre – that takes place on the infamous “la Bestia” train
Maria Full of Grace – follows a Colombian girl used as a drug mule
Flee – tracks the memories of an Afghan fleeing to Europe

You could also try The Load from Serbia, which follows a Serbian truck driver delivering secret cargo to Belgrade from Kosovo.

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Papi – Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival 2021

Sonia is a precocious 8-year-old girl with a vibrant imagination. Her flashbacks and surreal flights of fancy help her navigate life as the daughter of Papi, a drug dealer who returns from New York to become the biggest crime lord in the city.

For a first time feature, Noelia Quintero Herencia captures the slightly zany tone of Rita Indiana’s novel very well. She creates 8 year-old Sonia’s world by depicting her imagined fantasies alongside her reality. Doing this makes it harder for the viewer to figure out which scenes are real, making Sonia a pretty unreliable narrator. However, it also paints an interesting picture of her relationship with her dad.

Her two main fantasies consist of her leading a TV game show and spending time with her dad in the U.S. Both feel upbeat and happy, deliberately contrasting with her lonely reality at home. However, they both contain her dad’s vices – vices that at her age she’s just becoming aware of, such as her father’s infidelity and life as a criminal.

Her fantasies capture her changing perception of her dad as she grows up. She still imagines him as her hero, and herself as his princess, in a way that feels like she’s trying to hold onto her happy childhood memories. However, coming to terms with his criminal character, represents the end of her childhood alongside her idyllic childhood fantasies.

For an imaginative coming of age story that leans heavily on visualizing a kid’s imagination, Papi is well worth a watch.

Head to our LALIFF 2021 Hub for more reviews from the 20th edition of LALIFF.