Tótem

I'm not usually fan of children in films, but boy - Naíma Sentíes' performance here as the young "Sol" is terrific. She, replete with multicoloured curly wig is with her mother preparing for a party to celebrate her father's birthday. What we learn from very early on is that her dad "Tona" (Mateo Garcia) is very unwell. Indeed, from the brief scene we see of him in the shower - this is a twenty-se...

The everyday lives of average individuals ordinarily might not make for especially engaging storytelling. However, when they’re framed within the context of extraordinary circumstances, they take on an added new dimension, as witnessed in the second offering from Mexican writer-director Lila Avilés. This warm, heartfelt, bittersweet comedy-drama tells the endearing story of a family hosting a birt...

Summary: 9/10: Lila Avilés and her extraordinary cast, led by Naíma Sentíes, create a slice-of-life and deeply humanistic portrait of family that finds hilarity, sadness, and love in the daily rhythms of a crowded Mexican household. Lila Avilés' Totem is a hilarious and heartbreaking slice-of-life that captures something most Westerners will find utterly alien: a crowded house full of famil...