Naíma Sentíes

Montserrat Marañon

Marisol Gasé

Saori Gurza

Mateo García Elizondo

Teresa Sánchez

Iazua Larios

Alberto Amador

Juan Francisco Maldonado

Marisela Villaruel

Galia Mayer

Lukas Urkijo

José Manuel Poncelis

Alioth Gutiérrez

Rodrigo Lamas

Abel Sánchez

Pepe Aguilar

Georgina Tábora

Zuadd Atala

Michelle Menéndez

Daniel Primo

Mariana Villegas

Alfonso Rodríguez

Francisco Pita

Sylvia Littel

Violeta Santiago

Ricardo García

Ana Ortíz

Miguel Vassallo

Omar Guzmán

Lila Avilés

Thomas Becka

José Lubo

Gerardo Kalmar

Vanessa Campos

Rodolfo Sánchez Villa

Yair Ponce

Hector Zubieta

Estefania Bonilla Hernandez

Edoardo Rebecchi

Selva Tulián

Mariana Lavaniegos Puebla

Salma Hayek Pinault

Anel Martínez

Diego Navarro

Job Noriega

Antonio Aguilar

Leyla de la Hoz

Nohemi Gonzalez

Sandra Ojeda

Rune Palving

Lucas Lindvig

Armando Vargas

Carmiña Carballal

Mikael Windelin

Laura Elizabeth Ruiz Diaz

José Tamez

Micaela Ritacco

Ana Robledo Balvanera

Daniel Rojo Solis

Sofía Straface

Miguel Olea

Roberto Osorio

Blanca Jacqueline Vallejo

Siobhan Flynn

Kattia Calero Aráoz

Eliu González Gómez

Estefanía Lonné

Paula Troia

Ximena Frayde

Luis Alberto Cruz

Emil Lund Holst

Adrianna Maldonado

Alexander Marthin

Felipe Sanz

Aldo Fabricio Arellano

Amanda Renai Curdt-Christiansen

Rubén Velázquez

Ilse Serdán

Alistair Pulido

Lautaro Zamaro

Javier Aguilar

Ana Arregui

Jonathan Buenrostro

Tatiana Graullera

Diego Tenorio

Guido Berenblum

Louise Riousse

Jean-Baptiste Bailly-Maitre

Nora Solís

Gabriela Cartol

Jimena Fernández

Per Damgård Hansen

Drama

Comedy

Tótem

Limerencia Films

Paloma Productions

Alpha Violet Production

Laterna Film

Denmark

France

Mexico

Español

English

CinemaSerf

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-seven year old not destined to survive much longer. Clearly that information is known amongst the man's family and friends with his sisters, and his father, taking quite distinctly differing approaches to dealing with their impeding loss. The story takes it's time, but it's never dull. The observational nature of the drama, and the hugely charismatic effort from the young Sentíes is enthralling to watch as their day continues revealing stresses, strops, strains and a slightly defiant degree of optimism. As ensemble performances go, Marisol Gasé, Montserrat Marañon and Teresa Sánchez ensure that this well cast and presented story of a family in distress works evocatively. There are few tantrums, just a stoicism and dignity that makes this really quite a poignant story of a young girl - and a family - that doesn't quite appreciate that life is soon to change for ever.

Brent Marchant

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 birthday party for Tona, a young, beloved painter battling advanced cancer (Mateo Garcia Elizondo), told largely through the perspective of his seven-year-old daughter, Sol (Naíma Sentíes), who hopes against hope for her father’s recovery. As events play out, viewers watch as Tona’s family makes preparations for the celebration – often involving simple tasks told with delightfully funny twists that provide much-needed comic relief – as well as the various means with which his relatives are dealing (or not dealing) with an apparently impending inevitability that no one really wants to address or discuss. Yet what might seem destined to be an exercise in forced festivities with an underlying sense of morbidity turns out to be a loving, earnest celebration of life, despite the undeniable presence of an unwanted, intangible “guest” lingering in the background. While the film incorporates a few sequences that are inherently a little too incidental in nature compared to the larger overall narrative, “Tótem” nevertheless serves up a charming, touching, authentically presented tale that reaches out to audiences and surrounds them with sincere, loving feelings and a big, well-earned hug. This National Board of Review winner and Independent Spirit Award nominee is a fine, little-known indie gem that will surely move you, even if it leaves you with uncomfortably mixed feelings as its story unfolds. It effectively illustrates that there indeed can be times of boundless, overwhelming joy even in the face of overwhelming lament but that what ultimately matters most is what we make of these circumstances when they play out, especially when it comes to expressing how we feel for those whom we truly care about most.

Tótem( 2023)

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A review by CinemaSerf

Written by CinemaSerf on Tue Dec 05 2023

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