In this visually stunning, emotionally expansive drama, director Diana Cardozo and cinematographer Martín Boege collaborate to provide us a view of a modern Mexico childhood tinged with the threat of ever-present danger.
In a rural town, seven-year-old Luis is in awe of his swaggering father, who amorally loots his neighbors’ home just moments after they’ve been killed in broad daylight by a gangland execution. When his father decides to sell off his stolen prize to a town on the other side of the mountain, Luis accompanies him on an unforgettable journey, where self-discovery and unwelcome lessons in humility will unfold in merciless precision.
Cardozo’s original approach to exploring the toxic masculinity of this world is astonishing. Her piercing female gaze shows us a new approach to representing Mexico’s violence on screen, implicating and questioning our natural fascination with corrupt human behavior.