Before I get to the film, I'd love to know who on earth translates the titles of South American films into English! We had the disaster of Los Fuertes being translated as The Strong Ones when a competent translation would have been something like The Tough Guys except that the title actually referred to the forts taken by Chilean nationalists in the battle for independence. And here we have The Blond One. It just doesn't work in English. Why not Some Blond Lad/Guy/Fella? Because, at first, that's all Gabriel seemed to be for Juan, some guy. Or even "The Blond Guy"? The title is taken from a line of dialogue in a section when Juan is asked who is going to move in and he says, "The blond one" in the translated subtitles. I think that this is a bad translation. This would normally have been translated as "The blond guy".
After moving in with Juan as a lodger, Gabriel notices that Juan seems to be coming onto him despite his clear hettie proclivities and oikish straight mates. It takes nearly a third of the film before Gabriel gives in and the scene is sensitively and erotically done in the faltering first touches.
They are a couple of handsome lads with good bodies and more importantly, for the development of the plot, straight acting. No one suspects either of them would be up for swinging both ways - Juan has girlfriends coming round and Gabriel is a father. That's the way Juan wants to keep it.
As their relationship deepens it becomes clear that they are looking for different things. One wants stability and fidelity, the other wishes to keep up appearances and to sow wild oats in either direction. There are some pretty hurtful scenes where Gabriel has to keep stum about his feelings.
A few people have commented that the film is long and empty. For me it wasn't. The two leads filled the spaces by body language and looks. We don't have to have dialogue every second. These two guys did a great job of conveying emotion and feelings by suggestion.
The trainline linking the two guys' lives, work, offspring, other lover and friends was a recurring and unifying theme in the story often showing or being mentioned at significant occasions in the plot.
The guys get the futures they wanted - or were destined for - in the end. I found the ending liberating, especially in terms of being gay. I disagree with those who think the ending is pessimistic.
At an hour and fifty minutes, this evocative, languid film was just right.
