Gueros

...the grail may not be so important.

Set in 1999 amidst the university strike in Mexico, the film eschews the political (mostly) for the personal. The film moves with a pace that is both unpredictable, but in hindsight guided by some hand of fate. There are wonderful mirroring of events (seals, tigers and bricks/balloons), and the use of extreme sound/imaging borders on an ASMR trigger.

Memorable characters, humor and violence battle for your attention, and even if I only got the reheated meal via translation, this was maybe the most enjoyable Friday night film of the whole damn pandemic.

Two shorts and an interview accompanied the DVD I rented. Well worth watching, and not just for the sake of seeing Tenoch Huerta's acting chops. I was watching some of the deleted scenes included as well but I really did not want to alter the experience I had just completed.

One really unrelated tip, while I heard Ruizpalacios mention Truffaut, Jarmusch and Wender...not so long ago I watched the excellent multi-part documentary "Rompan Todo" which helped to set up the quest in a way.

That said, the film stands (strongly) by itself. Look forward to more from the film palace of Ruizpalacios!