Cucu
2019 · 8m · España
Directed by Víctor Marín
Tones: contemplative, tense
Rafa and Julia are a young couple who have an argument at home. Rafa drank more than he should at his brother-in-law Antonio's party, and now Julia tries to make him see that he cannot behave so immaturely: they are no longer teenagers and have to be responsible.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
A couple argues about getting drunk at a party—sounds like a Hallmark PSA, but Marín's refusal to let either of them off the hook, and that unsettling final turn, proves he's interested in something meaner and more interesting than a morality tale.
Formally composed domestic drama that recalls the Dardenne brothers' interest in moral friction between intimates, though Marín's tonal control—balancing comedy and dread—keeps it from settling into their usual gravity.
The film lives in a single, brutal choice: shooting Julia's face during her speech with almost clinical stillness while Rafa moves restlessly around the frame, which transforms a tired argument into a study of who gets to be heard—and the cost of not listening.