Y TU MAMÁ TAMBIÉN - 28/1/24

In a leafy tropical paradise at dusk, 25 Aftersun fans (and two doggies) settled down for our 7th screening of Alfonso Cuarón’s Y tu mamá también. This Mexican gem, set in 1999, follows two teenage best friends, Tenoch and Julio, on a road trip through rural Mexico with Luisa, a beautiful woman in her late 20s.

Under our theme of Dreams and Realities, the audience loved the movie’s juxtaposition of the immature and horny boys’ road trip alongside Luisa’s more serious life-changing events, all against the backdrop of Mexico’s political and economic realities. The backdrop is depicted by what characters observe through the car windows – scenes such as road accidents and rural weddings.

The jarring dynamic is also depicted in many of Cuaron’s beautifully framed shots, such as when Luisa, on the right, is on the phone distraught, bidding her recently discovered unfaithful husband an affectionate but final farewell, while Tenoch and Julio, left of shot, are boisterously playing pool.

One member picked up on the film’s nod to a previous Aftersun screening of Harold and Maude – a poster for the film is visible in the opening shots. Similar themes of intimacy between people of differing ages and seizing the moment led many members to suggest Cuaron was paying homage to the ‘70s classic.

Members shared how the film brilliantly portrayed Mexico’s class structure - with working-class Julio and upper-class Tenoch, but they wondered how realistic a friendship this close was when they were from vastly different classes.

The discussion then turned to the idea of ‘truth’ in the story: the lies the boys told each other about being intimate with each other’s girlfriends, the sad secret that Luisa keeps to herself, and the fictitious (or was it?!) destination - the secluded beach called Heaven’s Mouth Beach!

Members found this movie sexy, sad, interesting, escapism that managed to touch on class, intimacy, and mortality.

Maybe 2024 is the year to make that road trip dream a reality? 

Tuuka bulungi x