Review of El Bola (2000) by Evil S — 26 Apr 2010

I had just finished watching [b]Lilja 4-ever [/b]and I already had the urge to watch it again - an urge I probably wouldn't have resisted if I didn't have so many other movies to see. It?s just one of those movies that you want to stay in forever, because you have become so emotionally attached to the characters that you just want to be with them a little longer.

The characters, in this case, are Lilja (pronounced Lilia), a beautiful 16-year-old girl abandoned by her mother somewhere in the former USSR, and Volodya, a younger boy who becomes her only true friend. Both actors are simply terrific, and the chemistry between them is absolutely perfect. It doesn?t seem like a contrived relationship at all. There is a genuine affection between the characters that brought tears to my eyes, and the poignancy of their relationship comes from the fact that they are both utterly lost, with no one to care for them except each other.

In case you hadn?t gathered already, this is not a light film. The setting is very bleak and the story is tragic. The characters don?t have much to look forward to in life, and the only thing they have to amuse themselves in the meantime is a tube of glue and a plastic bag. When Lilja runs out of money, her only option is prostitution. And when she finally meets someone who appears to love her and who is willing to take care of her, you just know that there is something darker hidden under the surface.

But in spite of the difficult subject matter, the film is not without hope. In fact, it ends up being quite life-affirming in an oddly paradoxical way, and without ever seeming contrived or cliched. I don?t think this is a tearjerker or an emotionally manipulative film (that is, if a film can really be anything other than manipulative). It?s an honest, heartfelt portrait of two tragic lives that come together briefly and bring a little bit of solace to one another.

Beautiful film. Very highly recommended.

*.

[b]El Bola [/b]is a relatively unknown Spanish film about a 12-year-old boy named nicknamed ?Pellet? (it?s what the Spanish title stands for). As the film opens, you see him playing an insanely dangerous game of bravado that involves leaping in front of a train at the last minute. Pellet has some friends, but he seems to voluntarily remain distant from them, apart.

When a new kid is transferred into his class, he is immediately drawn to him and the two become friends. His new friend comes from an unusual family ? his mother is a lesbian and his father is a gay man. But in spite of this anomaly, both his parents are in steady, loving relationships, and the two couples often get together for activities with the kids, like going to have a picnic on the mountain. Pellet feels at ease with his new friend and his unconventional but strangely appealing family.

Pellet?s family appears normal in every way. A father and a mother, living together. But a dead brother he never knew sheds a dark shadow over his family life. And, as we eventually find out, the family has an even darker secret.

This is a wonderful film. It carries a heartfelt, sincere and simple message that doesn?t feel cliché or overstated. The characters are all very well developed and human, and the acting is great. Highly recommended.