Roma

There's something about the simple slices of life when captured in film that can be pretty endearing to watch depending on whether or not it's romanticized. Some can range from the standard coming of age conflicts down to relatable family dilemma such as the 2018 film Eighth Grade. But when something can be overblown with music trying to suggest what you're supposed to be feeling or if something is too cleanly resolved without exploring it further, it can take some people out of movie. This brings us to Roma, a foreign language drama that was written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron (Children of Men, Gravity, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban). It's been getting some awards buzz since its debut at the Venice film festival and the marketing campaign has been fascinating with how little was being shown (though I was unaware at the time that it was a foreign language, which explains why the trailers the way they were). It should be noted that Netflix was handling the distribution of Roma and it was slated for a limited theatrical before coming onto the streaming service very recently. I wanted to catch the big screen experience before it moved onto the small screen and I left the auditorium stunned by the excellent viewing it provided me.

Plot: The story takes place between 1970 and 1971 in the Colonia Roma neighborhood of Mexico City as it follows the life of a live-in housekeeper to a middle-class family. This is a semi-autobiographical take on the director's upbringing in that area and the amount of respect/love he has for that culture is on full display. What's rather nice in showing how authentic this feels from the way the family interacts with one another along with the fact that there's no music involved (except for a marching band). The pacing is so smooth with how the simple activities weave through the events that occur. There really isn't that much to comment on here as nothing is overdramatized but is rather a watching experience in seeing the key protagonists react to abrupt changes surrounding their personal lives. What's also noteworthy throughout this Cuaron's excellent cinematography that becomes its own character in most of the scenes where it just follows the people around without making any cuts.

Characters: The people to focus on are Cleo (Yaritza Aparicio) and Sofia (Marina de Tavira). Cleo is a live-in housekeeper who encounters an unexpected development in her life. Yaritza gives a performance that delivers on empathizing with her character, which is made even more impressive by the fact that this is her first acting gig and hasn't had any formal training in acting. Sofia is the struggling mother of the family Cleo works for. Marina does a great job as a head of the household trying to keep everything together as the exhaustion she conveys is sympathetic in the execution. Honorable mentions go to the child actors who portrayed the children in the family for their commitment to their respective roles and solid chemistry with one another. 

Overall Consensus: Roma is an excellent viewing that delivers on great performances, amazing cinematography, and beautiful visual storytelling told regarding the directors personal story. ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑*🍿 Runtime: 2 hours 15 minutes R
*: If this was given a normal theatrical release instead of the limited one, I would have given this 🎟 recommendation.

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You are a fan of Alfonso Cuaron's work. You enjoy foreign language drama movies (with subtitles provided). You prefer authentic unglamorous average mundane activities being depicted instead of over exaggerated schlock. You don't mind a movie being filmed in black and white format.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You aren't a fan of Alfonso Cuaron's work. You hate foreign language drama movies (with subtitles provided). You don't prefer authentic unglamorous average mundane activities being depicted instead of over exaggerated schlock. You are annoyed with a movie being filmed in black and white format.