Staying silent in order to protect someone is perhaps one of life’s most daunting and painful experiences, as it can fuel the onset of vengeance and violence. Director, writer, and producer Michel Franco presents “After Lucia,” an intimate and dark film from Mexico that examines grief after a tragic loss.

As part of a two-day symposium about Mexican cinema, "Renaissance of Mexican film and Soft Power", the USC School of Cinematic Arts and the USC Latino Student Assembly presented Franco’s film Saturday evening followed by a Q & A session with the filmmaker himself. 

"After Lucia" is an intense emotional story that will suck you into its world like quicksand from the very first scene. It's a film that touches upon several themes like coping with the loss of a loved one, dealing with grief, bullying in high school, gender inequality and society's treatment of the vulnerable.

The film begins with Roberto (Hernán Menoza) at an auto shop picking up the car his wife, Lucia, died in from a fatal accident. He gets in and drives off. It is a painfully long and silent drive. At a stoplight, he turns off the engine, gets out, and walks away, leaving the keys in the car. It’s a profound opening scene that embodies the film’s subjective and intimate take on grief and consequence.

Depressed from the tragic death of his wife, Roberto decides to leave Puerto Vallarta and move to Mexico City with his 17-year-old daughter, Alejandra (Tessa la González Norvind), who becomes a victim of bullying and hostility amongst her new schoolmates. Afraid of bringing more grief upon her father, she silently bears the abuse and humiliation. As a result, Alejandra grows distant from her father. She believes that silence will protect him, but it only brings more violence and consequence. The chilling ripple effect is difficult to watch, but it ultimately illustrates the human condition which was Franco’s objective behind the story.

“I wanted to make a film with universal messages of not only the issues of bullying, but the human condition of grief and vengeance,” Franco stated during the Q & A.

Franco’s naturalistic style makes his film a stunning piece of visual work. His use of long shots, silence, and subjectivity brings authentic tension, allowing us to truly become emotionally invested with the characters. He shot his film on a small Canon camera used for still photography to evoke realism. 

“I wanted to shoot in a way where you can really observe the film,” he explained.

Chuy Chavez's cinematography in this movie is brilliant. He uses many close-ups to create intimacy with his characters. By choosing not to move the camera very much in a scene, he almost transporting the viewer there. He places the camera in the back of a carseat, or on the side of a bathroom and lets the camera roll on for a few seconds, making viewers feel like they are invisible ghosts present in the scene.  

The way Franco particularly utilizes this technique to capture youth is impressive. The conversations that occur at the lunch tables and kickbacks are raw and natural. There are no signs of the typical teen angst and rebellion that are aggressively portrayed onscreen. Instead, Franco lets the camera sit still at a distance to really capture the interactions and aura of the scenes.

And this technique proves to be haunting, as we witness the subtle and silent growth of hostility that confines Alejandra. We are given an intimate look at how ugly humanity can get. And the way Alejandra silently bears through all of the brutality is painful to watch. 

Franco explained that while writing the script, he spoke with Norvind many times over the phone about her relationship with her friends to ensure that his film would illustrate an accurate and realistic portrayal of youth. He casted Norvind's real life friends as well in order to really push for authentic storytelling. 

“After Lucia” is an intensely raw and refreshing cinematic experience that overflows with verisimilitude. Norvind and Menoza both give raw and beautiful performances that consumes us with emotion. The way Norvind sits in a class full of hostile eyes and the way Menoza seeks vengeance are effortless yet deeply moving. 

Franco evokes universal messages by infusing his film with authentic essences of a father-daughter relationship and youth. Most Hollywood films that we see are driven by the speed of short edited shots and dialogue.

“After Lucia,” won the Prix Un Certain Regard award in the Cannes film festival in 2012 and was Mexico's official entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 85th Academy awards.

Reach Staff Reporter Janet Lee here. Follow her on Twitter. 

Reach staff reporter Sinduja Rangarajan here.