Nadie te oye. Perfume de violetas

"Yessica" (Ximena Ayala) is friends at school with "Miriam" (Nancy Gutiérrez) even though the two are really chalk and cheese. The latter is a more restrained lass whilst her friend is more of a boisterous creature. That might be because she lives with her mum and her step-dad and his son "Jorge" (Luis Fernando Peña). Now he's a total creep and makes an arrangement that will pimp out the young girl to his bus driving mate so he can earn some money for a pair of trainers! Despite the fact that she is taken from the street in broad daylight and assaulted on the floor of his bus, there is no effort made by anyone to bring the culprits to book as she, herself, is so embarrassed by the whole experience that she cannot tell anyone. Her rather toxic method of dealing with things is to become even more emotionally attached to "Miriam" and in so doing she starts to make problems for her friend that causes that girl's mother (Arcelia Ramírez) to intervene - and that makes the vulnerable girl even more so. This is quite a savage indictment on attitudes of sexual entitlement by a man whose treatment of the young girl is brutal and cavalier. He has no fear of retribution and as the young "Yessica" goes further off the rails the behaviour of the truly odious brother becomes quite sickeningly effective. That she is violently robbed of her innocence is tragic enough; the fact that she has no recourse to seek help, solace and/or legal redress is punchily portrayed here by a potent performance from Ayala and an unpleasant, under-your-fingernails, one from Peña. It's not a graphic film, but the message is writ large and offers a thought provoking critique of innate and obnoxious societal attitudes to sex.

"Perfume de violetas" is, by far, one of the best and most underrated Mexican films in years. The story is shocking and touching, the direction by Sistatch is marvelous and the acting is superb (just watch the two girls, they're wonderful). No more words. Just see this film. Four stars out of four.

It was shocking to see how nobody is able or willing to help in a critical abuse situation. The main character is abused by family, teachers and classmates in different ways, being ignorance the origin of this kind of abuse. When this girl suffers a sexual attack, things just get worse. The only reason she has to smile is friendship, which she finally destroys because of her distorted values and social skills.

After watching PERFUME DE VIOLETAS one wonder's if Mexican Cinema can go beyond portraying the sour and depressing stories of urban life. This is not the first entry of the "true life" story gender. Not withstanding looking at the film the cinematic process stands-out beyond anything else. The actresses are great, if one considers that this was their film debut, the surprise is even bigger, great work by the director. The photography also adds to the realm of desperation and reality, a careful camera work with saturated images and colors, changing the lighting and atmosphere between the homes of the two girls. Probably the low point of the film is the music use. It's so directed to the marketing of the soundtrack that make's you wonder if there was other consideration in its use. When the image and the song show the same thing then one or the other is overstating and therefore a waste. Good work and an appalling ending. Its going for the Oscar but probably will be left before the nominees, but it's worth watching.

The main character, Yessica, is a tomboy who is often in trouble. As a result, she is transferred to a new school, where she meets Miriam, who lives with her mother in what seems to Yessica like luxury. While Miriam's mother's main concern is saving enough money to get a better television, Yessica doesn't even have a bedroom to sleep in or money for the most basic school supplies. When Yessica's step-brother arranges for her to be raped, things go from bad to worse. In her environment she doesn't feel like there is anyone she can tell, so she must suffer silently, which reminded me of how the women in "Missing Young Woman" were often not missed.

This film, which was Mexico's nomination for best foreign language film of 2001, is difficult to watch, but it's worth the effort. My notes also indicate that I liked the soundtrack. Seen at Cinequest (the San Jose, CA film festival) on 2/27/2002.