This film is an adaptation of a 2011 play by Antonio Hernández Centeno. It's about two couples. The couples are probably in their mid to late 30's or maybe even early 40's. Both couples are comprised of a man and woman. One couple is wealthy. The other isn't. The two couples are connected because the two men used to be friends when they were younger, when they were teenagers. However, the two men parted ways and haven't seen or spoken with each other in nearly two decades, 16 years to be exact. The reason that the two men parted ways isn't revealed until half-way through the film. It's meant to be somewhat of a surprise, but, if you've seen
Esteros (2016), a fellow Breaking Glass Pictures release, then you can guess what that reason and what that surprise is.
Esteros was set in Argentina. This film, written and directed by Ángeles Hernández and David Matamoros, is instead set in Spain. Both films address the issue of homophobia. In Esteros, it remains more of an internal struggle. Here, it's also more of an internal struggle. Yet, there is a depiction of homophobic violence, but it's meant to take place in the past when the two men were young. The assumption that the present-day has eschewed that kind of threat, making it no longer a hindrance for the two men. Yet, that incident of violence still haunts them to some degree.
Pepe Ocio stars as Nacho, a very successful man and a somewhat wealthy man. He's not super rich, but he is doing very well for himself. He's also very well connected, having access to very influential people like politicians and such. He's married to a woman, and they're trying to have a baby, which they have not done. It's not clear how long they've been married, probably not that long, although it feels as if they could have been together for decades because it's clear that the passion and intimacy in their relationship is practically gone, if it ever existed.
He'll still have sex with her, but, in a way that doesn't feel as though he still loves her but simply in a way that feels as though he's scratching an itch. He has sex with her in a way that's similar to the way he self pleasures. It's quick. It's aggressive and all about his physical satisfaction and nothing else. His wife doesn't appreciate it, but she tolerates it. She also doesn't say anything. She doesn't seem all that much in love with him either.
Maria Ribera co-stars as Marta, the wife to Nacho. It's never explored, but she seems unable to have children or she's at an age where it's not really feasible for her. Her family seems to pressure her to have children. She doesn't seem to want it for herself. She seems to want it due to what her family wants or what she thinks is expected of her as a woman. The gag is that her family doesn't want her to adopt. They want her to have a biological child, but if she can't have a child biologically, the only option is surrogacy, which means another woman will carry the child and provide the egg. It would mean the child wouldn't be biologically related to her anyway, so I don't understand her family's position.
The film then becomes Private Life (2018) meets Indecent Proposal (1993). Private Life was about a couple approaching a woman to be the surrogate mother for their child. Indecent Proposal was about a couple being approached by a wealthy man offering them lots of money if the wealthy man got to have sex with one of them. In that case, the wealthy man wanted to have sex with the woman. The couple being offered the money had to decide if it was something morally and ethically that they could do, as well as the effect it would have on their marriage. Here, a similar thing occurs.
Iván Sánchez also co-stars as Denis, a waiter at a fancy nightclub in Barcelona who dreams of one day owning his own restaurant and being a famous chef, running it. He's currently dating a woman. They seem to be committed to one another. She's even helping him to achieve his dream. Denis was friends with Nacho when they were teenagers, but Denis left and hasn't had contact with Denis in 16 years. When Denis runs into Nacho, Denis explains he's struggling financially. Nacho then gets the idea to offer Denis money in exchange for allowing Denis' girlfriend to be the surrogate mother for Nacho and Marta.
All the while, we wait to learn what the incident was that caused Nacho and Denis to part ways as teenagers. We wait to learn what broke them up essentially. The filmmakers also wait in terms of camerawork and pacing. Often, the camera lingers on a shot, allowing a scene to play out in one single take without much or at times no cutting. There is a patience here in the filmmaking that is perhaps fitting of most European cinema. It requires the viewer to be patient as well.
Erika Bleda rounds out the cast as Carmen, the partner to Denis who is the younger woman who is supposed to be the surrogate. She'd rather focus on her career or her work as a seamstress at a nice boutique. She's more carefree and is opposed to the idea. Denis is convincing because he wants the money and he'll seemingly do anything to get it. She wants Denis to get his dream, but there are certain lines she doesn't want to cross. She's more or less the voice of reason here. Yet, the one thing about her, as well as with Marta is if they knew what broke up Nacho and Denis. The film doesn't reveal the incident that broke them up till the end, but I was unclear if either Carmen or Marta knew. Carmen and Marta seem to be aware of the implications of the incident, but they never reference it, and actions later seem to imply Marta's surprise about it.
Not Rated but contains sexual situations and nudity.
Running Time: 1 hr. and 19 mins.
Available on DVD/VOD on Nov. 16.
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