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Abel
R2 - United Kingdom - Network Review written by and copyright: Paul Lewis (1st May 2011). |
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The Film
 Abel (Diego Luna, 2010) 
Directed by Diego Luna, who is predominantly known outside Mexico as an actor in films in both Mexico and the United States, Abel opens with a series of fragmented images intercut with a black screen displaying the film’s opening credits. These images introduce the character of Abel (Christopher Ruíz-Esparza), a young boy who is being cared for in the psychiatric ward of a women’s institution. Abel’s mother, Cecilia (Karina Gidi), collects him from the institution, where the doctor, Fili (Carlos Aragón) tells her simply that ‘we can’t help him anymore’. From these opening moments onwards, the viewer predominantly shares Abel’s point-of-view: the conversation between Fili and Cecilia is filmed from a low-angle, encouraging us to share Abel’s perspective. Returning home, Abel is initially made to feel like an outsider by his older sister Selene (Geraldine Alejandra) and younger brother Paul (Gerardo Ruíz-Esparza). Initially, Abel remains silent, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. He also suffers from both insomnia panic attacks, and Fili advises Cecilia not to worry and to ensure that Abel continues to take the medication he has been described. Fili also suggests that no-one in the family should confront or challenge Abel, in order to avoid triggering another panic attack. Cecilia finds this difficult: soon Abel is talking, and much to Selene and Paul’s consternation he believes himself to be his own (absent) father. When Abel signs his sister’s report cards, Cecilia has to restrain Selene and remind her that under Fili’s advice, no-one should confront or challenge Abel. When Fili visits the family home, Cecilia asks him about Abel’s unusual need to talk to adults as if they were equals: ‘Isn’t it a little strange for him to talk like that’, Cecilia asks Fili; Fili responds by telling her that at the hospital, Abel ‘was always with adults’, and reminds Cecilia that at least Abel has begun to talk.  
Abel’s behaviour begins to become increasingly strange: dressing in a suit, he questions one of Selene’s male friends like a father might question his daughter’s date. He also begins to call Selene ‘my daughter’. ‘He may be sick but he’s your brother. We have to learn to live with him, Selene’, Cecilia tells her daughter. The family decide to allow Abel to carry on believing that he is in fact his own father. However, the scene is set for confrontation when Abel’s absent father, Anselmo (José María Yazpik), returns home. Cecilia tells Anselmo that she is struggling to make ends meet and, in his absence, visited Abel twice a week when he was in hospital. Anselmo complains that he doesn’t have it easy either. ‘What’s easy is abandoning your family, leaving as if you had no responsibilities’, Cecilia retorts.  
Things become more complicated when Anselmo begins to believe that Fili and Cecilia may have been having an affair, and Selene tells her mother that Anselmo has another woman and a new baby. Selene and Paul’s bond with Abel becomes stronger, and with Anselmo’s arrival making their home life fraught, Abel and Paul make plans to run away. The film runs for 79:02 mins (PAL) and is uncut.
Video
The film is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, with anamorphic enhancement. It’s a very nicely shot film, with an aesthetic dominated largely by warm colours (oranges, reds, etc). The transfer on this DVD is very handsome.  
Audio
Audio is presented by a two-channel track, in Mexican Spanish, with subtle surround encoding. There are optional English subtitles, which are free from errors and easy to read.
Extras
The disc contains a good range of extras, although it has to be said that within this group of interviews with Luna and some of his cast and crew, there’s a lot of repetition in the comments made about the film. Abel Chile Premiere Video Diary (21:59). This verite-style segment follows the crew as they prepare for the film’s premiere. The director talks about his personal connection with the film and its successes at Sundance, Cannes and Arruba. He also talks about the problems facing Mexican filmmakers in finding adequate distribution. (Spanish, English subs.) BFI Education Screening Q&A (24:49). Recorded at the 2010 London Film Festival, this is a question and answer session (in front of an audience) involving Diego Luna, writer Augusto Mendoza and actor Christopher Ruiz Esparza. (In English.) VIVA! Q&A (5:39). This question and answer session was recorded at the VIVA! Latin American/Spanish film festival in Manchester, 2011. Diego Luna and Pablo Cruz, the film’s producer, are interviewed in front of an audience. (In English.) 2010 interview with Diego Luna, Augusto Mendoza & Christopher Ruiz Esparza (16:49). Here, the participants discuss the major themes of the film, the production of the film and their approach to filming it (‘kind of a theatre approach’). (In English.) Trailer (2:12). Image Gallery (4:40).
Overall
Told through the eyes of its nine year old protagonist, Abel has an offbeat sense of humour; the film’s oblique view of family life recalls Bunuel. In the extra features on this DVD, Diego Luna describes the film as ‘Hamlet at nine years old’, and that’s a pretty good summary of the picture. One of the film’s targets is absent fathers; like many Mexican men, Anselmo has apparently left his family to find work in the United States, but this has had the effect of increasing the pressure on Cecilia. (Selene later reveals that Anselmo hasn’t left Mexico at all but has instead started another family in a different part of the country.) Anselmo’s return is resented by both his wife and his children, and his attitude and behaviour is shown as juvenile and irresponsible, the actor capturing the character’s macho charade perfectly. In fact, all of the cast are very good, with Ruíz-Esparza giving a remarkable performance as Abel, who easily garners the audience’s sympathy. For his first dramatic feature, Luna shows a strong sense of staging, and the suspenseful climax of the film is particularly well-handled. This impressive directorial debut, which is a very rewarding film to watch, gets a strong release from Network. For more information, please visit the homepage of Network DVD.
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