Jump to the good stuff: The Story | Some Thoughts | The Final Verdict
The Story:
Tu Me Manques is about a father who travels from Bolivia to New York City after his son commits suicide. Once there, he confronts his son’s ex-boyfriend about his death.
The film opens with Jorge (Oscar Martínez) going through his dead son’s computer, reading his text messages and Facebook account. While doing this, he accidentally calls Sebastian (Fernando Barbosa), Gabriel’s ex-boyfriend. He yells at Sebastian, telling him to never contact him or his family, and that he blames him for Gabriel’s behavior and what happened to him. And when Sebastian says that he should bring this up with Gabriel and not him, Jorge tells him that Gabriel is dead.
Sebastian is shocked to hear that Gabriel passed away. He tells Jorge that he didn’t know. The two men argue a bit more, then hang up on each other, leaving Sebastian to deal with is grief alone.
Later, Jorge arrives at Sebastian’s doorstep looking to understand who his son was and what drove him to suicide. And with this, the story begins.
Some Thoughts:
Tu Me Manques takes place in four different times: 2014, when Sebastian meets Gabriel; 2015, when Sebestian is putting together a play about his relationship with Gabriel; 2016, after the play is produced; and an unknown time, which is when Jorge confronts Sebastian. Scattered throughout the film are portions of the play that outline specific parts of the story.
Much like the play, which casts thirty different men to play Gabriel, the non-play portion of the story has three men playing him. Although at times it’s a bit off putting, it’s not nearly as distracting as the timeline.
Because the focus of the film is Bolivian culture and religion, it doesn’t take the time necessary to show Gabriel’s relationship with his father. However, it does depict how the culture influenced the way Jorge raised Gabriel. While this is enough to explain Gabriel’s poor self-image, we never get to see how he interacted with his father on a personal level. And although Martínez gives an excellent performance, a little more insight into their relationship would enhance the story.
Sebastian introduces Jorge to his friends and brings him to gay clubs. Jorge seems to take it all in stride, which feels odd since Jorge is from a culture steeped in homophobia. He never seems at odds with his vision of Gabriel as he’s being shown the life his son led. The only time he displays any confusion about Gabriel’s life is when he talks to Sebastian’s friend, Rosaura (Rossy de Palma). Because of this, the story never feels complete.
If director Rodrigo Bellott spent more time concentrating on Jorge grappling with understanding his son and less time on being artistic, Tu Me Manques would be a better film. It’s a shame because the acting, cinematography, and direction are well done.
The Final Verdict:
Because Tu Me Manques places art over storytelling, it’s not easy to recommend. The artistry is there, and the story is compelling, but it lacks the emotional impact and depth that a more focused story and linear timeline would have achieved.
