Párpados Azules by Ernesto Contreras

When Marina, a lonely clerk at a uniform company, wins a luxury holiday for two at an employee raffle it is presented to her as an act of fate, her sole chance to secure happiness. She feels obliged to find a companion for the trip but is confronted by the isolation of her existence. A chance meeting with Victor, a forgotten acquaintance from middle school, seems to provide the answer to her solitude, but as intimacy develops between them it becomes apparent that the trip itself will have little bearing on the course of their destiny.

Selected to compete at Cannes Critics’ Week, Párpados Azules is the first feature film by Mexican director Ernesto Contreras, from a script by his brother Carlos Contreras.

The film is visually compelling ; images are successfully used as tools of narration and attention to details such as the movement of a hand or a striking colour contrast express the development of the protagonists’ relationship far more powerfully than the dialogue. Verbal communication in the film is repetitive and mundane, focussing on trivial subjects such as details about the trip. This reticence combined with the richness of visual details creates an effect of unarticulated longing, which is enhanced by scenes of unexpected nudity. The portrayal of the central relationship is subtle relying on suggested emotions rather than explicit communication. Events unfold in parallel and the view point shifts between the protagonists giving the impression of a shared perspective on the development of a mutual affection.

The film is also an effective portrait of loneliness. The reoccurring use of framed scenes, filmed through a door or window, places the protagonists at a distance enhancing the sense of their isolation. It is sparse in terms of events and characters which also works towards emphasising the solitude of the two central figures who are almost unbelievably alone. It is from the redressing of this isolation through the developing relationship that the film creates an optimistic effect, as we see people with nothing to locate them in life become anchored. This mood is also created by the repetition of Ray Davies song Strange Effect which is uplifting in the face of bleakness. In this sense Párpados Azules is a conventional yet subtle romance.

At times the banality of dialogue threatens the engagingness of the film, and the Contreras struggle to present unanimated characters in an interesting manner. As a result of the lack of communication that characterises the central relationship, scenes of profound intimacy and distance seem to arise implausibly ; this gives a slightly unconvincing feel to the development of the plot. In spite of this the poignant depiction of loneliness and companionship, alongside the visual subtlety of Párpados Azules, makes it a sensitive rendition of a gentle love story.

Camilla Buchanan