Roma

Audience Reviews

View More

Poe L Apr 28, 2019 One of the better steadfastly-naturnimalistic, fly-on-the-wall numbers I've seen.

Draco S Apr 26, 2019 Alfonso Cuaron is a director I have never really been able to get into, yes I can admire films like Gravity (2013) and enjoy mawkish fare like Great Expectations (1998) but I've never been one of those people who thinks that Children of Men (2006) is one of the best films of the decade. With Roma I felt as though I was finally let in, emotionally, to one of Cuaron's films as much as this is a technical marvel with unique sound design and stunning cinematography it is centrally a human story and taps into emotions that we all feel and painful experiences that those close to us have experienced, if you are a teenager like myself. The performances are subtle but richly layered with buried pain and repressed hurt as the characters they play attempt to move on with life despite dramatic shifts occurring around them. I was not aware of the political context going into the film but that did not hurt the film as an experience and I am sure that had I read up on the political issues occurring in Mexico at the time the film would only be enhanced. Cleo Gutierrez, Yalitza Aparicio, is a live-in maid for an extremely rich family headed by matriarch Sofia, Marina de Tavira, and her husband, wealthy doctor Antonio, Fernando Grediaga. They live in Roma, Mexico City and experience great changes over a short period of time with Cleo becoming pregnant by the fickle Fermin, Jorge Antonio, and Antonio abandoning his family for his new mistress. Through all of this turmoil Cleo and Sofia must learn to support one another even as their class differences separate them. The film is an expensive production and Netflix worked tirelessly in their campaign to win a Best Picture trophy, fortunately this film would actually have been more deserving than the eventual winner Green Book (2018). It's endlessly gorgeous as every shot looks like it's been pored over for hours, several scenes pause just to take in the scenery and external conflicts occurring around our two leads and these quiet moments give the film a real sense of time and place. We hear Altman-esque overlapping dialogue in snippets as Cleo heads to the movie theatre or Sofia's son watches his father cavort around the city with his mistress. Odd decisions are made too as we pause to listen to a man sing a folk song at a dinner party seemingly out of nowhere and watch Fermin's martial arts teacher discuss philosophy whilst teaching his pupils how to perform a deceptively simple move. All of this combines to produce a technically brilliant film that makes huge strides where most films rely on gratuitous violence or wide angle shots to convey conflict or isolation this film is far more sophisticated in it's construction. The acting is wonderfully understated and yet Aparicio, giving a largely silent performance, conveys her need for love from somebody, anybody whether it be Fermin or Sofia's family better than most actresses could with so little to work with. In a smaller role de Tavira is equally great as we see her breakdown as her husband abandons her and his children only briefly but throughout the rest of the film the anguish that she carries with her and frustration at the world that she cannot circumvent her unfortunate circumstances is startlingly clear. Both husbands are weak, guilty men who are unable or unwilling to be the men that their romantic partners and children need and in that way these two women are connected as they don't even have the respite of knowing that their husbands were just ignorant, they were fully aware of the negative consequences of taking the actions they did and yet they still carried them out. Seeing these two women rely on one another even as those around them try to take advantage of them, seen in a particularly horrifying scene during the lavish dinner party, is heartwarming as a reminder that even the most unlikely supporter can be found in someone you've known for years without truly caring for them. This is one of the few really great films to come of the last ten years as it explores closely the pain and anguish of disappointment in the one you thought you could rely upon and unexpected support from the most unlikely source. The penultimate scene is one of the most touching of the year and yet like everything else in the film it is a moment approached with Cuaron's characteristic lightness of touch. I was certainly moved by it and it contained some of the best performances of the past year despite featuring relative unknowns, that's a credit to their talents and Cuaron's ability to construct a film like few others. See more

Apr 26, 2019 Which I could give it 0/5 Biggest waste of time ever!

Luke L Apr 23, 2019 I didn't like it all.

Ron L Apr 20, 2019 Cleo is a young domestic worker for a family in the middle-class neighborhood of Roma in early 1970s Mexico City. ROMA is a beautiful portrait of a middle-class family struggling through domestic strife, loss, love, political turmoil. This is a love letter to the women who raised Cuarón. He allows the characters' lives to take place without trying to shoehorn meaning and exposition into these impactful moments. Watching this film feels like you are studying a painting. It is slow. It is still. It is quiet. And it all comes together as though you had an aha moment. Cuarón is both the director and cinematographer and there was no one better for the job. There is so much seamless intension in every scene. You feel as though you know the home he lives inâ"like this is your city. The cinematography is masterfully done. The sound design is immersive. Every character is of importance to the film. Roma is a beautiful, moving piece of art. See more

Albus S Apr 20, 2019 Alfonso Cuarón created a cinema masterpiece with Roma. Beautifully directed, excellent performances and cinematography. Cuarón balances nostalgia and sentiment just right without things getting overbearing but still gripping you. It's a shame not more movies like this reach cinemas. In a world saturated by superhero movies and kid stuff one can only reminisce the good old times when cinema was truly in the hands of daring filmmakers with a vision. What does it say of our current movie going culture that everything is, so dumbed down? See more

Read all reviews

Roma

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING