Film: Abel Year of production: 2010 UK release date: 25th April 2011 Distributor: Network Certificate: 15 Running time: 82 mins Director: Diego Luna Starring: Geraldine Alejandra, Karina Gidi, Christopher Ruiz-Esparza, Gerardo Ruiz-Esparza, Jose Maria Yazpik Genre: Comedy/Drama Format: DVD Country of production: Mexico Language: Spanish
When a family loses its father figure, can it survive alone or should it seek another, no matter how destructive the consequences may be? Abel focuses on a nine-year-old boy who assumes the role left open by his unfaithful dad.
The film opens with Abel returning from a two-year stay at a hospital, during which time he has been entirely mute.
His mother Cecilia takes him home and we see a fractured family: she has to sell their belongings just to survive from week to week; Abel’s younger brother Paul ignores him and misbehaves; while his teenaged sister Selene is becoming increasingly frustrated with the amount of work she has to do to support her mother.
The family dynamic changes abruptly one day when Abel begins behaving like his missing father. The hospital warns his mother not to confront him for fear he should become mute again, and he quickly assumes a position of authority.
Although he has filled a vital role, and his siblings are, for the most part, glad of what he is doing, his unusual behaviour brings an ever-present tension. His actions are not normal, but Cecilia is afraid of what will happen if she tries to stop him. The situation is further inflamed when Abel’s father returns out of the blue…
Family dynamics are central to the film, which lightly poses the question of whether it matters who the head of the family is. The answer may be made readily apparent, but there are moments where Abel’s behaviour is of great help to his siblings.
This is a highly original debut by Diego Luna that holds your attention from the opening shot to the last. As a director, Diego shows a gentle touch that allows his actors’ performances to come out fully. The premise of his debut stretches reality, but we can accept it because of the naturalistic way it is portrayed, in both its comedic and dramatic moments.
Abel, played by Christopher Ruiz-Esparza, is the central performance - and the most striking one. As the disturbed mute we see at the beginning, unable to connect with anyone, and the strict but fair father he becomes, his natural acting talent makes us believe in the character, even if we may never fully understand what is happening in his head.
But every character was perfectly realised, without a single weak link in the cast. We are able to empathise with everyone’s situation, even if we cannot sympathise with everyone. Each character has a likeable element to them, including Abel’s errant father Anselmo, played by Jose Maria Yazpik. Despite his questionable morality, and sometimes spiteful actions, he shows concern over Abel’s abnormal behaviour, and is convinced that it must not be allowed to continue.
Karina Gidi deserves particular praise for her portrayal of Cecilia, the single parent near breaking point who only wants the best for her children but is unsure how to provide it. The strain she is under is always apparent, even in the film’s many lighter moments.
The unexpected seam of comedy throughout the movie is well-counterbalanced with the inherent drama. Funny scenes such as Abel interrogating Selene’s boyfriend are flavoured with the sense that it is difficult to know where this story will end, and how the situation will be resolved, or even if it can be resolved.
The well-written script flows naturally and not a single scene is wasted. Abel’s final fate is always in doubt, although the more astute cinema goer will pick up on a certain conversation that foretells the climax of the film, if not how it will play out.
A highly promising debut, Abel brings realism to an unlikely situation, and places the family unit under close scrutiny. There are moments when we are left uncertain whether Abel is mentally disturbed or if he is filling an absent role out of necessity. RWI
Film: Abel Release date: 7th January 2011 Certificate: 15 Running time: 82 mins Director: Diego Luna Starring: Geraldine Alejandra, Karina Gidi, Christopher Ruíz-Esparza, Gerardo Ruíz-Esparza, José María Yazpik Genre: Comedy/Drama Studio: Network Format: Cinema Country: Mexico
Acclaimed Mexican actor Diego Luna makes his feature debut as a director with Abel, a family drama about the love of a mother for her son, which touches on subjects ranging from the pain of dealing with mental illness, to the effect the lack of a father can have on a family. Produced by his own film company, Canana films, Abel represents a labour of love for Diego Luna from start to finish. Abel (Christopher Ruíz-Esparza) is just 9 years old when, having spent two years in an institution following the departure of his father, he is brought back home to be reintegrated into his family. His mother Cecelia (Karina Gidi) instructs Abel’s siblings Selene (Geraldine Alejandra) and Paúl (Gerardo Ruíz Esparza, real life brother of Christopher) not to challenge Abel or do anything which might upset him. This becomes something of a challenge when Abel starts to believe that he is the childrens’ father, and Cecelia’s husband.
Disturbed by some of his behaviour, yet delighted that her son has begun to communicate with his family again, Cecelia encourages the children to play along with the fantasy. Things become complicated when Abel’s father Anselmo (José María Yazpik) returns to the home, and is less willing than others to take his place in the new familial hierarchy…
The premise of Abel offers many comic possibilities, each one of which is lapped up with child-like enthusiasm by Diego Luna. Scenes in which Abel waits calmly in the living room to size up Selene’s boyfriend, or examines Anselmo’s new car, insisting that he should take it for a spin, are the stuff of sketch comedy - comic and surreal in equal measure, and exposing the characters’ mixed reactions to the tragic humour of the situation perfectly. However, Luna is also aware that viewing the concept from the purely comedic perspective of a child behaving like an adult would be worthy of a ten minute sketch at the most, and he is equally adept at highlighting the stress that the situation causes and the fragility of Abel’s situation.
The possibility of Abel being institutionalised for a second time looms over Cecelia as she struggles with the morality of holding onto her son when he is living a delusion. Much of the emotion of this moral dilemma is drawn out by Karina Gidi’s performance, as she communicates the deep, unconditional love that Cecelia has for Abel, as well as the suffering that the situation causes her.
A lot of pressure was put on Christopher Ruíz-Esparza to play the central character in such an intensely emotional film, especially considering he is a non-professional actor. Diego Luna cast him from open auditions from the children in the area in which the film was shot, feeling that it was important to cast someone who had no acting experience. The results are remarkable as Ruíz-Esparzo not only provides the majority of the film’s comedy - the scenes in which he behaves like an adult are priceless - but provides a character who perfectly encapsulates all of the themes at the heart of the film - seeming vulnerable enough to be so deserving of his mother’s love, but deranged and violent enough that it is difficult to argue against him needing closer medical attention, for his own safety and others. The casting of his brother Gerardo was an unexpected stroke of luck, as the bond between them translates onto the screen and provides some touching, and very funny moments.
For a film with such a bizarre premise, Abel is shot in a very realistic way; most of the dramatic scenes take place in mid to wide shots with limited camera movement. This proves to be a good decision on Luna’s part, as it keeps what is happening on camera very intense and realistic, avoiding alienating the audience by having it seem ridiculous. It is important to Luna that the impact of his story is not lost amongst the more fantastical comic elements, and framing it through a realist perspective stops this from happening. In scenes with less dialogue, however, Luna is allowed to be more experimental, and softly focused close ups of plants, water and bugs provide moments of contemplation, and forefront a theme that runs throughout the film - the wonder of the childhood imagination.
The film would have benefitted from a more developed exploration of Abel’s father, as it was his absence that initially caused Abel’s regression. We are never offered an analysis of his motivations for leaving his family, and, as a result, he is fairly one dimensional. However, as Abel is, at its heart, a celebration of a mother’s love for her son this can be forgiven. Through incredible performances, writing and directing, Diego Luna’s film is a touching, beautiful and heartfelt exploration of a truly unique character.
Comic and affecting in equal measure; Abel is a remarkable achievement for a first time director. The pain of a lost childhood is explored in heart rendering detail, yet there is enough love in the powerful performances of Luna’s cast to ensure that, despite the depths of suffering to which we are taken, Abel remains an uplifting film. PK
Directed by Diego Luna and executive produced by Gael Garcia Bernal and John Malkovich.
Christopher Ruiz-Esparza (a mere 9 years of age at the time of filming) stars as Abel, a young boy whose confounding behaviour and refusal to speak has landed him in a mental health facility. His single mother is convinced that a reunion between Abel and his younger brother and older sister would be the answer to repairing his condition, so she arranges for Abel’s doctor to release the boy for a single week.
Abel starts speaking the day after returning home but the joy of the mother quickly turns into confusion as the child starts speaking and behaving as a fully-grown adult - her missing partner. Not wishing to worsen his condition, the mother and the siblings go along with Abel’s unorthodox, strange behaviour. But then his father decides to show up…
Disturbing, surreal and darkly funny, Abel deals with an important issue in Mexico – parental absenteeism - increasingly common as many Mexican men abandon their families to find work in the United States.
Film: Abel Release date: 7th January 2011 Certificate: 15 Running time: 82 mins Director: Diego Luna Starring: Geraldine Alejandra, Karina Gidi, Christopher Ruíz-Esparza, Gerardo Ruíz-Esparza, José María Yazpik Genre: Comedy/Drama Studio: Network Format: Cinema Country: Mexico
