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Director: Mario Casas
Premiere: 25.08.23
Mario Casas makes his directing debut with a film that balances bold immediacy and fragile imperfection. The energy on screen feels alive and honest, even when urgency leaves traces of rough edges. The piece nods to the urgency of late 20th century Spanish cinema and sits between the social realism of early 2000s Spanish filmmakers and the quinqui movement, while retaining a distinctly contemporary pulse.
The story follows a couple burdened by guilt, Óscar Casas and Candela González, and offers a window into a world that seems tucked away in time. Casas directs with a clear will to pursue his own vision, away from fleeting fashions and aesthetic tricks. This choice brings a clarity and a freshness to the project, even if a touch of naïveté and symbolic imagery occasionally surfaces. The strongest quality lies in how the film centers the couple and captures the way they inhabit and respond to their surroundings, how they touch, and how their faces carry arcs of intimacy and the weight of violence, all while the protagonists are still young.
There is something quietly beautiful in the blend of love, understanding, and empathy that permeates the film. This is how Casas treats his characters. By contrast, the screenplay, co-written with Déborah François, feels somewhat unfinished at moments: certain beats come across as schematic, and the dialogue does not always flow as naturally as the actors’ physical performances.