2006 NEWFEST-Broken Sky

Broken Sky

      This second feature from Mexican director Julián Hernández
follows an intense relationship between Gerardo (Miguel Ángel Hoppe)
and Jonas (Fernando Arroyo), two youths attending college and sharing
an apartment together. They are clearly in the first flush of love -- that
state where they want to spend all their time together and can't keep their
hands off of one another. It's also a state that rarely if ever lasts.

      Jonas is the first to feel something for another. One night while
at a discotheque, he dances with another young man named Bruno
with whom he shares a passionate kiss. That one-time chance
encounter disrupts the young men's lives. Jonas begins to pull away
from Gerardo who feels hurt and frustrated. Eventually he gravitates
to Sergio (Alejandro Royo) who has harbored a crush on Gerardo, yet
there seems to be a tie to Jonas that Gerardo cannot seem to break.

      Hernández has taken an intriguing approach to the material that
initially proves lyrical but eventually becomes tedious. There is virtually
no dialogue and a sparingly used voice-over that poetically explains
the action. The early sequences have a lovely quality as the main
relationship between Gerardo and Jonas is explored and revealed.
But gradually, the director's use of sweeping pans to indicate the
passage of time wear out their welcome. The first few times, they
work, but by the fourth time, it becomes an affectation.

      I have jokingly described BROKEN SKY (EL CIELO DIVIDIDO) as
the gay, Mexican version of THE BREAK-UP, although to be fair, this film
at least has more sympathetic characters. The main actors, all of whom
are relative newcomers, manage to work well together and are eloquent
in their silences. Also noteworthy is the work of cinematographer
Alejandro Cantu. But, at 140 minutes, BROKEN SKY goes on far too
long. Strand Releasing will be distributing the movie in theaters.

                       Rating:                C -