Abel

The film has its funny, sad and thoughtful moments and is very much about the mental health of a child who in his father's absence wants to take his place. It is well made, but throughout the story, my overwhelming thought was about the bad parenting and why the mother let the child take the place of the father and why she let the boy dominate as the patriarch (for not all fathers should be) and submit to him. The epitome of woke child rearing. Let your child be whatever it wants, what ever the damage to them or to you. Don't set boundaries or confront problems before they get out of control, rather just pander to the little darlings. 6* because of the quality of the story telling and film making.

From a brief description, Abel sounds like a lighthearted comedy. A boy, possibly autistic, takes charge in his household when he realizes that his mother is struggling to raise her three children. After staying up all night watching Pedro Infante movies, he begins to act like a father, taking care of his younger brother and older sister. However, problems arise when he takes his role too far. The film gets slightly disturbing when Abel begins thinking he is actually an adult. There are predictably cute moments that occur when a child acts like an adult, but they are constantly undermined by slightly disturbing moments. Don't get me wrong, Abel is still somewhat of a comedy, but it has a much darker side.

Luna is clearly well versed in Lacan (or, at the very least, he's read Mulvey). Abel's problem is with his identification. Something went wrong in the mirror stage and now his entire understanding of the symbolic order is incorrect. He rejects the name of the father and things get strangely Oedipal. In a climactic sequence, Abel's father makes use of a mirror in an attempt to correct Abel's identificatory issues.

Usually, Lacan is evoked for commentaries on the medium itself. Luna gives the ideas a fresh take by tackling them within the plot. If you've read Lacan or are familiar with his ideas, you'll definitely get a kick out of this film. Even if you haven't (but if you're interested in film, you should definitely read Mulvey's short article Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema) you can still enjoy the film as a bizarre story about a kid who challenges his absent father.

I must confess that during the first few minutes of "Abel," I became confused. In fact, I almost gave up watching it via Netflix Instant.

But I'm so pleased I didn't.

Truth be told, what prompted me to log on to "Abel" was that it was directed by Diego Luna, an actor whose work I deeply admired when I first met him in his brilliant and sensitive performance in "Y Tu, Mama, Tambien." But I'm happy that I hung on, because I discovered Luna's gentle sensitivity to the struggles of Mexico's lower-middle-class in this, his first film as a director.

Which made me remember my own childhood when I also was a poor kid growing up in western Pennsylvania.

Sr. Luna clearly has a great future as a director.

Because the "truths" his work reveals are "universal."

1. It's Diego Luna.

2. It's Diego Luna.

3. It's Diego Luna.

And if that's not enough to get you to watch this film, you must not know Diego Luna.

The film explores cultural familial roles, mental health culture and stigma in Mexico, and forces viewers to examine the effects of family in culture.

Basically, it's amazing.

The acting is spectacular. The performances are absolutely spot on. Casting was perfect. The music is perfect. The photography is perfect. Lighting, set, and characterization are perfect. Per-freaking-fection.

I was looking forward to watch this film since the first time I saw the trailer. It seemed like an interesting idea and it didn't look like the kind of story Mexican cinema is used to show.

And it, indeed, is a peculiar story. There are some awkward and funny situations as a result of a boy acting like his own father, but on the other hand, the drama of a delusional kid who doesn't really know who he is and feels the need to fill the father role in his family. The real conflict begins when the real dad decides to finally show up after a two year absence.

I liked how the characters are portrayed and also the acting, especially from Christopher Ruíz-Esparza (the boy who plays Abel). The story is told with a good balance between comedy and drama and is really enjoyable.