La orilla

Here is an example of self-conscious introspection going in too many directions at once. Bad enough for the viewer trying to cope with shaky frames from hand-held cameras, even worse when the narrative slows for long, heavy pauses in either words or actions. One wonders why so many low budget films share this phenomenon. It is tempting to call out to the screen, "Get on with it, already!"

Still, there is charm in the notion that two young friends can figuratively swim their way, as ocean sounds play in the distance, through casual interruptions in a simple assignment to locate and retrieve a family document of some importance as they visit a beach house in the cold of winter. It might even be possible to salvage this film by cutting out totally irrelevant scenes that serve only to provide background for their respective characters. A filmmaker's self-indulgence in attempting to recreate a familiar story from his or her past reminds me of how quickly I run away whenever someone says, "To make a long story short..." which in fact becomes a stream of consciousness without an end.

Indeed, there is no clear end to this film. It just goes on and on.

I can understand this movie doesn't get the best rating from the average gay movie viewer. It stays away from most gay movie clichés. There's no mentioning of anything gay scene related. There's no dancing to cheap house music in a gay disco or bar. There's no muscular actors or too pretty characters with successful high paid jobs. There's no singing of musical tunes nor is there a group of happy gay friends sharing their latest flings. There's no straight guys to be turned and no rent-boys and hustlers to be paid. There's no diseases and it doesn't end in drama. There's no acting in which inner dialogue is is being constantly expressed in words. There's no gimmicks or tricks to keep you entertained nor endless music scores on piano. There's two boys that could have been your best mates at school (when you discovered alternative music, alcohol and smoking weed) who admit to loving each other more than they dared show before. I enjoyed the natural pacing of this movie, the timeless boredom of seaside towns out of season, the frustration of family and the recognizable (big) events in the little lives of the everyday characters involved. Well done, I need more of this!

I was delighted to discover this gem of a film. Outstanding, naturalistic performances and relatable characters. I found myself completely engaged from the very beginning of this film. Excellent casting and direction of two quality lead performances. Highly recommend this film!

This is a pleasantly developed story, well acted and directed. The two themes interweave - coming to see a bullying father for what he is, and using the character of a gay friend to help Martin, who is the victim of his own father's anger, arrive at freedom and self-assurance. This is one gay character who is not angst ridden, but comfortable in his own life and consequently able to be a guide and support. The final sequence shows self-doubt being finally overcome. This is not an action movie, but a story of psychological development. It is of the utmost importance when watching this film to read the subtitles carefully. The film is slow in parts because these are teenagers given time to say things they find it hard to express. There is a lot of time given to plucking up courage. A good film, and I enjoyed it.

I understand that to make a gay themed movie in Brazil might not be very easy but in what is generally considered one of the more passionate of Latin American countries this is lacking in passion. It's not that the story is told too slowly, it just feels like the actors spent the whole movie looking forward in mild embarrassment to the" love scene" they were going to film at the end. Half way through I was wondering if this wasn't one of those movies that are accidentally labelled as gay themed just because they have a gay friend in one scene or something and then when one of the leads goes to buy beer with the girfriends boy friend it looked like maybe they were the gay couple because those two actors actually seemed to have chemistry...but no. I gave it five stars and I feel that I was very, very generous . Not great but watchable if you can't find anything better.