• Release year: 2019
• Director: Pablo Olmos Arrayales.
• Producers: Braulio Fragoso, Pablo Olmos Arrayales, and Eugenia Orozco.
• Screenplay by: Pablo Olmos Arrayales.
• Cinematography by: Luis Enrique Carrión.
• Music by: Alvaro Arce Urroz.

Shotgun Commentary: layered mystery with a dark perspective.

Review

Rendez-vous is a film that takes its sweet time getting to the point but makes the wait worth it with a wonderful development. Like all films shot in one shot, this project makes a big gamble in its treatment of time. One that, regardless of the result, is technically admirable to begin with.

The story follows Lili (Helena Puig) and Eduardo (Antonio Alcantara) on their first date, which beings at the museum and ends at Eduardo’s. Like most first dates, it’s full of awkwardness and cringy behaviour on both sides. However, you will soon learn that, sadly, it is also packed with lies. These layers and layers of deception and misdirection will take you on a journey in which identity and intentions can never be taken for granted.

The test

Coming back to the use of time, it is important to establish that, when shooting in one shot, either your story is a badass succession of non-stop surprises, or you need to make a few creative cuts here and there to make time go by faster. In this case, the second strategy is needed, because, let’s be honest, first dates are a pain to be in and an even bigger pain to witness. Still, these creative cuts are not quite enough for the first third of the film to go down easy. As such, it is important to know this: it will get better, and it will be worth the wait.

After the painfully tedious date, the masks come off and you find out the real nature of the protagonists, or do you? This question will haunt you for the rest of the narrative as the twists and turns keep coming. Who’s the villain? Who’s the victim? Are there such things as “villains” and “victims”? The questions keep piling up, complicating the story along with the supporting characters that show up from time to time to bring in an outside perspective of the situation.

The heroes

As with any one-shot feature, regardless of how much Puig and Alcantara have been paid, it is not enough. They deliver an incredible non-stop performance in which their characters barely get a few minutes of respite from being on-screen. The rest of the time, they are full-on embodying these complex and intriguing characters with layers upon layers of thoughts, personality, intentions and deep-seated trauma.

Naturally, one cannot forget the camera operator Luis Enrique Carrión. The titanic endeavour of filming a whole production on one shot and hitting every single mark will forever be one of my favourite wonders in the world of cinema. The choreography of the camera is complex, yet it follows the story seamlessly. One shudders to think of the tremendous mental and physical strain that such a result must require, but the result is definitely worth it.

All in all, Rendez-vous is a fantastic work with a topsy-turvy story created by an incredibly talented team, both in front and behind the cameras. If you are in the mood for a nice thriller and feel strong enough to push through the cringe of a first date, check out this feature, NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON PRIME US!

Advice to take from this movie:

• Avoid online dating if you can.
• Sometimes people are exactly what they seem to be.
• If you soundproof a room, remember to soundproof doors and windows as well.

What’s your take? Have you watched Rendez-vous? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message on my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀