End of the Century

It would be easy to criticize this first full-feature directorial effort. Not everything in this movie succeeds by a long-shot. The criticism that it's too slow and boring certainly applies to the first 15-20 minutes. It's rare when an 84-minute film should be cut by at least 5-7.

But the criticism that this is a "gay movie" is TOTALLY off-base. What makes this film worth watching is the enigmatic, non-linear story about love, partnership, loneliness, and the passage of time. The fact that the two principals are gay is actually irrelevant to who they are as people, and what "Ocho," the main character, is looking for.

Whether you leave the theater thinking wondering what is the true story (I must say no more), or thinking that it's all just a metaphor, the film is ultimately thought-provoking. After seeing a preview, my wife and I discussed it all through lunch and well beyond.

A great movie touching on the topic "What if?" which most of us can relate to. Felt that the characters had great chemistry and the story leaves you thinking. Very enjoyable to watch and good job by the director to tell an authentic and refreshing story.

This wonderful film unwinds backward and forward to tell about a relationship between two men and the people around them. Time twists and turns as what seemed real at the time fades from memory then re-emerges in present time. A little hard to write about. You have to see it to take it all in. I have seen it more than a few times and did not get tired of watching. The cast is wonderful and the chemisty between the men is right at ever turn. Hot or cool or in between. The photography is part of the cast and plays an important role. Barcelona. Gorgeous. OK. Go see it. Write your own review.

In my humble discernment, the key to making sense of this movie and of its many twists and turns of time and the many ambiguities of the story lines, is that much of the story happens in Ocho's imagination.. If we assume the long, plodding initial scenes depicting Ocho's arrival in Barcelona are real, of his reacting to solitude and loneliness by listlessly wandering the streets, staring vacantly at nothing in particular, until he notices Javi in the plaza below and then later at the beach. At that point the story picks up and grows increasingly intricate and complicated. The ambiguity of the story, however, questions how much of the story actually happened and how much is just Ocho's imagination, just a continuation of his introspective mind through the preceding opening scenes up to that point. How much of the story is actual history and how much is fantasy? It's no surprise that Ocho's and Javi's appearance didn't change during 20 years, if in fact 20 years never went by except in Ocho's mind. Whether the details of the story are real or fantasized, this film tells a true story of the odyssey of a heart as a lonely hunter in quest of a loving human connection. A beautiful film.

While the film never quite reaches the emotional peaks that its romance subgenre may imply, Lucio Castro's 'End of the Century' is a sexy, beautiful, and contemplative tale of a love affair that lingers in the mind.