The fragmentary and confused existence of a 20-something Argentinean in a small coastal town is the focus of Tomas De Leone’s The Apprentice. The film does nothing new, but what it does, it does well: Movies about guys struggling to find their place in the world are a dime a dozen, but De Leone wisely has grounded this lean, thoughtful and often claustrophobic piece in unspoken, real emotional truths, giving his first film an evocative richness that leaves it looking like anything but apprentice work.
Pablo (Nahuel Viale, best known for Juan Villegas and Alejandro Lingenti’s Idleness, and an old...
Pablo (Nahuel Viale, best known for Juan Villegas and Alejandro Lingenti’s Idleness, and an old...
- 1/10/2017
- by Jonathan Holland
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Lumina Films
Barren, windswept Patagonia provides a fitting existential backdrop for "Glue", the first feature by Argentina's Alexis Dos Santos that captures the adolescent experience with rare and bracing veracity.
The extensively improvised film taps into the hormone-charged yearnings and fears of a trio of teens with whose frankness and vulnerability is seldom presented in such stories.
Wearing his feelings of alienation like a badge of honor is 15-year-old Lucas (a remarkably unself-conscious Nahuel Perez Biscayart). His life at home has been less than idyllic, what with his mother constantly splitting up with his philandering father.
Endearingly gawky, Lucas prefers to spend most of his time hanging out with his more-assured buddy Nacho (Nahuel Viale), riding bikes, sniffing glue and playing in a band.
When they eventually meet up with the shy, sweet-natured Andrea (touchingly rendered by Ines Efron), the three form a curious bond, drawn together by unspoken sexual tensions and awkward silences that likely will have more than a few viewers nodding empathetically.
Dos Santos and cinematographer Natasha Braier incorporate a hand-held, rough-around-the-edges visual style that is neat in keeping with the prevailing feeling of emotional isolation; the film is subtitled "An Adolescent Story in the Middle of Nowhere." Super 8 footage is dropped in occasionally to reveal the characters' innermost thoughts and feelings.
Effectively underscoring those pent-up, raw emotions are several selections by 1980s folk punk trio the Violent Femmes, whose "Blister in the Sun" and "Add It Up" serve as a particularly potent Greek chorus for this fearless and tender rites-of-passage portrait.
Barren, windswept Patagonia provides a fitting existential backdrop for "Glue", the first feature by Argentina's Alexis Dos Santos that captures the adolescent experience with rare and bracing veracity.
The extensively improvised film taps into the hormone-charged yearnings and fears of a trio of teens with whose frankness and vulnerability is seldom presented in such stories.
Wearing his feelings of alienation like a badge of honor is 15-year-old Lucas (a remarkably unself-conscious Nahuel Perez Biscayart). His life at home has been less than idyllic, what with his mother constantly splitting up with his philandering father.
Endearingly gawky, Lucas prefers to spend most of his time hanging out with his more-assured buddy Nacho (Nahuel Viale), riding bikes, sniffing glue and playing in a band.
When they eventually meet up with the shy, sweet-natured Andrea (touchingly rendered by Ines Efron), the three form a curious bond, drawn together by unspoken sexual tensions and awkward silences that likely will have more than a few viewers nodding empathetically.
Dos Santos and cinematographer Natasha Braier incorporate a hand-held, rough-around-the-edges visual style that is neat in keeping with the prevailing feeling of emotional isolation; the film is subtitled "An Adolescent Story in the Middle of Nowhere." Super 8 footage is dropped in occasionally to reveal the characters' innermost thoughts and feelings.
Effectively underscoring those pent-up, raw emotions are several selections by 1980s folk punk trio the Violent Femmes, whose "Blister in the Sun" and "Add It Up" serve as a particularly potent Greek chorus for this fearless and tender rites-of-passage portrait.
- 11/7/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.