Juanxo Villaverde’s short film Pa Eso Estamos is a story of friendship and human connection. It is the director’s first attempt at filmmaking, and the film’s message is worthy of genuine thought and consideration which for the most part, outweigh some of the technical shortcomings of the project.
The story follows Pepe and Toño, two neighbours in contrast to one another. Pepe is a heavy-set, carefree, clumsy neighbour to Toño who keeps to himself and doesn’t say much. The outgoing Pepe is often seen stuck outside of his home having forgotten his keys. Toño usually comes to the rescue, and after having opened the door to Pepe’s apartment leaves the scene with the line “I got your back”, which is the film’s title in Spanish. Through several attempts to repay Toño with an offering of friendship and interaction, Pepe fails to reach his neighbour on a human level.
Playful transitions featuring the busy streets of Panama are a technical highlight, and add to the film’s tone depicting the everyday stories of everyday people. There are some beautiful long shots of the apartment complex that include the subjects, which are aesthetically pleasing and help expand our view of the film’s setting.
Hugo Victor Rodriguez’s performance as the lonesome but cheery Pepe helps the film’s narrative drive forward. The comedic irony in the film takes place when Pepe has lost his keys once more, except the keys lost weren’t his, they were Toño’s which he’d taken by mistake. And this time, it is finally Pepe who needs to step up to the plate and help his neighbour. The emotional height of the film is achieved in this scene where the two characters sit in the hallway of their complex, and a distressed Toño unable to escape Pepe finally decides to open up a bit and share his journey. A journey that is filled with trauma and phobia that prevents him from living in peace, as he suffers from projecting his phobias onto his daughters. As a result, Pepe shares details of his own life, such as his deceased father, and his odd gigs as a mascot on the streets promoting chocolate and juice. They light a joint, which brings them together and helps Toño shed some stress from his day as his wife is preventing him from seeing his daughters unless he seeks psychotherapy.
The film’s strength is shown in the sharing of trauma between the two characters. As stated by Toño: “Talking to you is better than taking diazepam”. Though antidepressant and medical drugs prescribed to help with mental illness and stress are certainly effective, there is nothing quite like human interaction and learning from one another that makes us feel truly alive and purposeful. It is through sharing that we start to heal and it is through the simplest of interactions sometimes that a reaching hand can offer us the sweetest offerings of help. The film does a great job of enticing viewers to consider this notion. And in its raw and amateur form, there is a beautiful truth within this film that speaks of human bonds, especially when it comes to the formation of friendship.
It does say a lot without saying much. They are neighbours who have lived beside one another for what seems to be presumably a long time, yet they’ve never truly interacted with one another. This goes to show that sometimes, help could be right by our ear and all we need to do is be aware and willing.
Pa Eso Estamos also constructive in portraying the theme to never judge a book by its cover. Pepe seems like a go happy worry-free character, but as we get to know him we understand that he is as lonely and hopeless as they come. In his own words, his only excitement comes once every two weeks, when his porn magazine arrives at the door and he’s got to get to it quickly before anyone finds out. We also find out that he is divorced and his father has recently died, and at the end, we become aware that he lives with his mother who can’t open the door for him when he’s locked out because of her Alzheimer’s. What tragedies everyday people hide behind solemn faces that we just don’t see. A film for real people who care about real people’s problems, Pa Eso Estamos is a good start for Juanxo Villaverde.
By: Darida Rose
© 2020. UniversalCinema Mag.