Tótem

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Roy J It's like Monsoon Wedding but a Mexican birthday...saddest birthday ever. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/24 Full Review Wayne M Totem is a beautiful gem of a film. It's small in scope but enormous in heart, passion and human empathy. Set over one day it marks director Lila Aviles as a talent of great significance and promise. The film takes place in Mexico, mostly in one house setting. Seven year old Sol is being taken to her grandfather's house to celebrate the birthday of her father, Tona. Sadly Tona is critically ill and as the film goes on we get the feleing his days are numbered. The first half of the film is mainly an observance of the work being done by Sol's aunts as they frantically prepare for everything that needs to be done for the party. Sol is wide eyed and smart and takes it all in. The second half shows the party and the many friends who gather to celebrate Tona. It's a joyous occasion but one that is also bittersweet. There is not much plot here, but this superb film does a great job at the showing the joys and pains of life and the vital human connections we share. It's a cast probably not well known, but they do a superb job in a truly wonderful film. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/30/24 Full Review Alec B It captures certain messy and frantic family dynamics well but it doesn't add up to much more than "family is complicated and death it hard". Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 07/15/24 Full Review dave d I enjoyed the first film Lila Avilés gave us, but this one didn't connect for whatever reason. We're looking at the world through a kids eyes, but why do I care about the characters and why is so little told to us about each one. The sense of gloom wasn't enough to bridge the gap of why I should be caring about these people. Frustrating, in large part, due to the way the film pulls together well at the end. Didn't understand the last few shots and perhaps I didn't get the Mexican Feature either! Final Score: 5/10 Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 07/25/24 Full Review Jorge C Lamentablemente, tengo muy malos recuerdos de las fiestas familiares en casa de los abuelos cuando era niño. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 05/14/24 Full Review ANTONIO M Through the gaze of the little protagonist, the film immerses us in a special day, framing it like a photo in the 4:3 shooting format (both oppressive and not), and makes us feel empathy for her extended family. Second work by the Mexican Lila Avilés, it is an interesting choral fresco, bittersweet, poetic, touching that celebrates life and death, love and art in all their forms and connections. An intimate, personal film that feeds on the bonds between the different individuals of the group; which rests on the variable and indefinite characteristics of human relationships when faced with harsh and irreversible changes; and which here are filtered through the expressive eyes of the little protagonist Naíma Sentíes, the true soul and driving force of the story (despite her very young age, she seems very mature and more sensitive than some adults), catalyst and spur of noble intentions and acts of generous love . The director identifies with her, suspends judgments on facts and people, and invites the viewer to participate emotionally in the events - sad and joyful at the same time. In short, a delicate and sensitive film that surprises and involves. A portrait full of nuances in which every viewer can recognize insights into their own life and human and family experience. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/21/24 Full Review Read all reviews

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