Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001)

Alfonso Cuarón has proved himself over the years to be one of the most innovative and brilliant directors around. His work spans across many different styles, but it's hard to argue that he knows how to put a film together. If you've ever seen the car-chase sequence in 'Children of Men', or any of 'Gravity' you know he knows how to do big cinema with the best of them, as evidenced by helming probably the most beloved film in the Harry Potter series, 'The Prisoner of Azkaban'. But before all of that, there was this; a micro-budget road trip Spanish language film about two horny teens going on a road trip through Cuarón's native Mexico. 

Upon it's release, this film became something of an unexpected hit, traveling the globe and winning over audiences left and right. It really launched Cuarón's career, along with the film's two leads - Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal. The plot, if you could even call it that, revolves around two boneheaded teenage friends who do not much more than get stoned and talk about sex, as you do at that age. One of them, Tenoch (Luna), is the son of a prominent and highly suspect person within Mexican politics. It is never explicitly said what he does but we know they are rich, well respected, and he's done some questionable things along the way. Julio (Garcia Bernal) comes from a very different background, living in a high rise flat with his mother after his father abandoned the family many years prior. Despite their cultural differences, these two are thick as thieves. Indeed their friend group have declared themselves "Charolastras", which means something along the lines of being an "Astral Cowboy", even going so far as having a set of rules which they all must abide by. 

After their girlfriends disappear to Italy for the summer, the two lads come to meet an enchanting older lady, Luisa (Maribel Verdú), the wife of a relative from Madrid who they somehow convince to go on a road trip with them to a place that doesn't exist. All quite basic stuff when written on paper but to characterize a film like this based on plot would be to completely miss the point. Certain pieces of work come into the world and they just hit you on a sensory level - meaning you can touch, taste, feel them as you watch. This is one of those films. It is about the experience of watching, more than anything else. This does not happen by coincidence. 

After plying his trade to varying degrees of mediocrity in Hollywood, Alfonso Cuarón decided to go back to Mexico and make a film he had always wanted to make. He also made the choice to abandon all of the traditional techniques of cinema, instead opting to have minimal crew, a bare-bones script, and just a handheld camera capturing everything. The result is a film that completely engulfs you in atmosphere, to the point that you forget you are even watching a film at all. It's like you're just watching life happen. This is a technique that has been attempted many times, going for a more documentary-like feel, but I truly think that nothing comes close to this. Of course it's not as simple as just having a hand-held camera to make the footage shaky. To make this footage appear so effortless, there is exquisite technique at the heart of it. 

What stands out throughout this story is the balance between the minutae of these three people's lives set against the monumental wider backdrop of Mexico itself; a troubled, magnificent country with a life all of it's own. None of this is stuffed down our throats in an overt way, but the subtle contextualising that takes place is really quite masterful. For example, and this is one of many, there is a scene where the two boys drive through the hellish traffic of Mexico City, only for the narrator to intervene, explaining that a man had died there that day, and that protests about this man's death would continue through the city in the near future. This is all occurring while the two teens drive past the scene, smoking a joint, and we see the bloody corpse lying on the ground, barely covered by a sheet, the police ushering people past. Now, this scene must have been staged because, after all, we are watching a fictional film. However, it feels as if you are front and centre of the action, catching this actual event as it occurs in real life. 

It happens again later in the film, where our three unlikely road-trippers have stopped in a small town for dinner. As usual they are chatting and bantering about sex and drugs and whatever other trivial topics people generally bond over, meanwhile an old lady comes in the restaurant and the camera just casually follows her, the protagonists conversation fading out of earshot, to the back kitchen where there are a gaggle of elderly Mexican women dancing and making food together. Thus, again, putting you right in the heart of the action. Not many people are brave enough to let moments like this happen, but here technique elevates the form to something different entirely. More than just a raunchy road-trip movie, which it certainly is at times, it becomes more of a love letter to the people and culture of Mexico. In this context this film is completely intoxicating. As the character of Luisa even comments at one point, "this country breathes with life" and I defy anyone to watch this film and not feel an instant desire to visit. This being despite the trucks armed with machine-gun-toting men casually rolling by, or the police stoppages, or the extreme poverty in some areas. It's all executed so perfectly that you really feel like you are a fly on the wall and somehow understand this beautiful country a bit better as a result.

Also at play are the interpersonal relationships between the two boys and this new woman in their lives. There is plenty going on here too and, much like the visual style, the conversation feels improvised to the point of being real. Indeed that was again part of the plan, having a loose script and trying things out as they go. And, again, this has been attempted many times but here the plan is executed pretty much flawlessly. The acting from the three leads is superb and you can see why so many accolades came their way later in life. As the story unfolds, all three of these people, in their weird way, come of age on this trip and, as is often the case in life, things don't always work out the way they might've planned. But, most importantly, you feel all of it due to the strength of these performances. As a result, the end creeps up on you, seemingly out of nowhere, and hits you with a surprisingly emotional and thought-provoking punch to the gut. 

Also, worthy of mention is the narrator: an unnamed voice who articulates not only the inner feelings of various characters in the film, but provides insight on past and future occurrences with the heft of what feels like some sort of spiritual deity. There are many soul-stirring moments as a result of this addition and, yet again, elevates the material beyond the surface into something altogether more provocative and meaningful. All quite heady stuff for a film about two boys trying to get their leg over. 

Ultimately it's a coming of age film, but it's so much more than that. It is a funny, gritty, unflinching, look at life in Mexico for the average citizen. It is about the loss of the innocence of youth and a stirring look into what really matters in life. Even some of the peripheral characters sear themselves into your brain and the whole thing leaves a melancholy taste after it's all said and done. It somehow captures the joy, freedom and feeling of eventuality that most adventures inspire. No matter where you go, there you are. And no matter how much fun you're having, real life is always waiting for when you're done. Simply put, this is one of my favourite films of all time and should be a must for any aspiring filmmakers, as it proves quite brilliantly that you don't need all the bells and whistles to make a great film. You just need heart. 

★★★★★

JB.