El hilo corto de la inocencia
2023 · 7m · México
Directed by Sebastián Lordy
Genres: coming-of-age, drama, romance
Tones: contemplative, melancholic, tender
Paulina plans to declare her love to Matías, who has no idea of her feelings, but a surprise visit breaks her heart. Meanwhile Iñaki, Matías's cousin, who has loved Paulina for years, sees his chance — a romantic triangle that threatens a long friendship.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
It's a love triangle, yeah, but Lordy refuses the obvious emotional payoff—instead he lets silence and restraint do the actual work, which means half the internet will find it boring while the other half realizes that's exactly the point.
Formally situated in the Latin American coming-of-age tradition (Lucrecia Martel's DNA is visible), Lordy demonstrates precise command of negative space and the unsaid, using melancholy not as mood but as structural principle.
The film's entire architecture pivots on a single performance choice—Paulina's face during the reveal—where the actor decides *not* to react, and suddenly the whole triangle collapses into something about self-protection that reshapes what we thought we were watching.