Review of Roma (2018) by Andrewburge — 21 Dec 2018

Alfonso Cuarón was always great at mixing visual proficiency with human emotions, often presenting the world (or outer space, in "Gravity") in a lush, pristine manned and making it interact with its characters.

So, in comes 'Roma', his latest release. Its premise its simple. It focuses on a middle-class family in Mexico City during the early 1970's. Yet for all its bitter-sweet humanity, the film feels slightly disconnected by having the potential of nearly every single scene absorbed by this prism of technical and visual marvel. Sure, it looks good, the atmosphere is present, but this mask, as nice as it might be, its too thick and often the film feels like a family slideshow. Its beautiful, but you do not really want to sit through it.

Alright, maybe not that bad. There are many scenes containing true emotional weight. The one in which the chaos on the streets breaks free, but more than that, the scene in which Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio) gives birth to her firstborn. That scene is presented with a personal purity which could have been this film's mark to greatness. The camera stays fixated, there is a sense of suppressed emergency and for the first time in nearly two hours, I felt truly connected. Not soon enough though, the film goes back to its habits.

Fortunately, this still is one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen. The Mexican new-wave directors really have a gift for presentation and an unmatched skill of polish when it comes to cinematography and editing. I also feel like mentioning Aparicio, who is a first-time actress at this point. She managed to hold her own as the lonely, troubled but loving maid.

In the end, I believe 'Roma' is more of a personal vision and nostalgic release for Cuarón rather than a traditional film. All this production, art-decoration, cinematography and editing is stunning to behold, too bad its such a thick emotional filter.