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Jorge is a janitor, but not by choice. His father, who was also a janitor, had a stroke one night when Jorge attempted to leave home. Now he has to stay and take care of his father, who is also beginning to suffer from dementia. Meanwhile, Jorge’s brother Antonio is locked away in prison where he meets Paula in an acting class. Paula is also an inmate and gets roughed up regularly because the other women in her cell block are jealous of her looks. The seemingly only way to curb the beatings is if she were to get pregnant so she can stay in the maternity ward. There’s only one problem: her boyfriend Antonio is infertile. Oh, brother.

Of course that’s not all there is to this story. Jorge has his own love interest, a desire to find a real job as a businessman after graduating correspondence school, and a best friend that decides to start up a blackmailing business. All of these elements come together perfectly to form one tightly constructed story about love and sacrifice. In his feature debut, writer/director Daniel Sánchez Arévalo is able to find a wonderful balance between the dramatic and comedic. He’s able to tackle some heavy personal issues with humor, while still giving them the proper respect the story requires. And somehow he really makes it seem like a big sacrifice to have sex with an attractive girl. If that isn’t good writing, I don’t know what is. But more seriously, I appreciated how the film dealt with class relations issues and his position in general life without making Jorge seem whiny. It’s much easier to relate to someone who aspires to escape or change.

I found myself getting hooked in right from the first scene. As soon as it reached the last shot of the scene, where Jorge is literally trying to escape his janitor job by climbing over a brick wall, I knew that this would be a movie that knew how to tell a story with effective visuals. The characterization in the film is fantastic. The increasingly demented father and Sean, his best friend and confidant are equally fun and outrageous characters that add new life to their scenes. It’s impossible to tell the motivations of Jorge’s love interest Natalia which allows us to go through the roller coaster ride along with him. And Antonio is a likable loser despite being a convicted criminal with a bad temper.

The only small gripe I have is that just when you think the film may be getting a little too long, you might be right. The running time isn’t a problem, it’s just that a slightly different ending may not have been a bad thing, or at least a slimmed down version. But everything else works to near perfection. The score by Pascal Gaigne (which reminded me of the themes in “Kikujiro”) nicely accentuated the atmosphere created by the great acting and the mood brought about by the good cinematography. I can write about the movie four hours on end, but the best way to truly appreciate the charm and beauty of the film is to go see it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

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