How do you reinvent yourself at the age of 76? The answer to that question, which arrives in its own peculiar form, forms the basis for Jose Mari Goenaga and Aitor Arregi’s queer comedy-drama Maspalomas, first unveiled in the Official Selection at San Sebastián (the bulk of the film is set and shot in the city). Reactions at the premiere suggest domestic audiences will find plenty to enjoy in this layered character study, which could also enjoy its fair share of success internationally thanks to its blend of laughs and tragedy that put a fun spin on the foibles of old age.
Central to the whole mixture is Vicente (Jose Ramón Soroiz) who, at three quarters of a century, is living the life on the Canary Islands: cheerfully and unabashedly gay, he copes with a recent break-up by cruising the local beaches and engaging in casual sex with fellow queer men who have a predilection for older guys (the opening scene plays like a geriatric take on a similar set-up in Alain Guiraudie’s Stranger by the Lake). He does this without a worry in the world, since an old friend is in charge of the financial support for both Vicente and his dog.
Then, one day, things change radically: a medical emergency brings Vicente back to his hometown of San Sebastián, where he has to recuperate within the confines of a retirement home, since his family is in no condition to take care of him. Not least because, having abandoned his wife and daughter years ago after realizing he was gay, the old man is essentially a stranger to his now adult offspring, who has a son of her own and has not told him about the complicated backstory.
Faced with a new living situation, Vicente must also deal with being back in the closet, as it’s unlikely his fellow residents would be open to such a detail. The staff is a different matter, especially when it turns out the protagonist’s assistant, tasked with helping him get through the routine required to make a full recovery, is not so secretly gay. But that may prove a moot point once external circumstances make their way into the home’s everyday activities (the story takes place in the months leading up to the European Covid outbreak, but in a way that feels neither lazy nor exploitative).
From the beginning, the movie’s charm rests primarily in the eyes of Soroiz, filled with hope and lust for life in the early stages and subsequently with dejection when Vicente has to rebuild his existence from the ground up. His face, a melting pot of conflicting emotions, is our guide on a journey of self-rediscovery where the spiritual turmoil is reflected in the film’s sense of place: cinematographer Javier Agirre bathes us all in the intoxicating sunshine of the Canary Islands, making us feel Vicente’s euphoria, before successfully making San Sebastián, one of the more scenic locations available, look as drab as possible through the lens of the main character’s inability to have his usual fun once he’s back on home turf.
It all builds to a quietly emotional climax that meditates on various types of isolation (even before the pandemic element kicks in, Vicente is a bit of a shut-in by choice, partly because of his medical conundrum), having devoted two hours to the meaning of friendship and family in the context of what is essentially a coming-of-old-age narrative. And when the visual punchline hits, it’s cathartic in the most unexpected manner.
Directors: Jose Mari Goenaga, Aitor Arregi
Screenwriter: Jose Mari Goenaga
Cast: Jose Ramón Soroiz, Nagore Aranburu, Kandido Uranga
Producer: Xabier Berzosa
Cinematography: Javier Agirre
Production design: Mikel Serrano
Costume design: Saioa Lara
Music: Aránzazu Calleja
Sound: Alazne Ameztoy, Álex F. Capilla, Nacho Royo-Villanova
Production companies: Irusoin SA, Maspalomas Pelikula AIE, Moriarti Produkzioak SL
World sales: Film Factory Entertainment
Venue: San Sebastián International Film Festival (Official Selection)
In Basque, Spanish
115 minutes
