Agua
2014 · 12m · México
Directed by Ricardo Esparragoza
Genres: coming-of-age, drama, LGBTQ+
Tones: contemplative, tender
The life of Daniel, an introverted teenager, takes a turn with the arrival of his new swimming companion; the extroverted personality of Carlos will detonate a series of questionings in Daniel's personality and his sexuality.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Coming-of-age queer romance is catnip for festival programmers, but Esparragoza refuses the obvious beats—there's a restraint here that actively works against catharsis, which is either brave or frustrating depending on your tolerance for films that won't give you the moment you're waiting for.
A formally composed study in the grammar of longing: the film locates its emotional architecture in negative space—what isn't said, what isn't shown—which places it in conversation with the European coming-of-age tradition, though the execution feels occasionally more tentative than resolved.
The decision to let almost every charged moment between Daniel and Carlos happen in the margins or under water—literally and figuratively submerged—transforms what could be a conventional awakening story into something about the specific textures of vulnerability; it's a film that trusts the audience to read silence.