Film Cumbia Netflix

[Laila Berri]

Netflixhas done a fantastic job of boosting international film festival darlings, even if they get buried underneath the sea of content that the streaming giant churns out every day. Netflix's latest festival acquisition is the Mexican teen drama I'm No Longer Here, from writer/director Fernando Fras de la Parra, who recently came off the success of the first season of HBO's Los Espookys. Watch the I'm No Longer Here trailer below.

The script for I'm No Longer Here made a splash in 2013 when it won the Bengala award in 2013, later getting published as a short story. In 2014 that script was chosen for the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and soon, it won the Gabriel Figueroa Development Grant at Los Cabos Film Festival. Frias' final film would premiere at the Cine Festival in 2019 and make the festival rounds at the Mar del Plata, Tallinn Black Nights, Puerto Escondido un Oaxaca, and Gteborg Film Festivals.

"In the mountains of Monterrey, Mexico, a small street gang named 'Los Terkos' spend their days listening to slowed down cumbia music and attending dance parties, showing off their outfits, hairstyles and gang alliances. Ulises Samperio, the leader of Los Terkos, tries to protect his friends from the nefarious elements of a quickly evolving drug/political war, but after a misunderstanding with a local cartel, he is forced to leave for Jackson Heights, Queens, a diverse immigrant community in New York City. Ulises tries to assimilate, but when he learns that his gang and the whole Kolombia culture is under threat, he questions his place in America and longs to return home."

Fernando Fras de la Parra: Ya no estoy aqu started in my head as many different projects, but little by little they just became one. The beginning was the music. I had a CD my friend Emilio had brought to me from Monterrey around 2005, a bootleg CD filled with cumbia songs. I loved them. There was something very special that just caught my attention.

Cumbia comes from the time of slavery in Colombia. It started with the way that people who were enslaved danced these little steps because their feet were tied together. In Mexico, starting from the 1960s and 70s ever since, there have been block parties celebrating this tropical rhythm that comes from the south, from Colombia.

For me, Ya no estoy aqu really represents the lack of social mobility, but it also comes as a response to how I saw certain narratives coming out of Mexico and Latin America in general. I felt that there was a glorification of violence, or that we were contributing to this morbid way of looking at things. It is very important to me to consider the people whom we are talking about. The film shows the reality not by showing the shocking violence and the tragic events, but instead by showing the impact they have on the characters.

In 2011, 17-year-old Ulises leads a gang called Los Terkos dedicated to the Kolombia or Cholombiano subculture. This lifestyle consists of dancing and listening to cumbia rebajada, a slowed-down version of Colombian cumbia. Los Terkos dress in bright, baggy clothes and sport homemade, eccentric hairdos.

Inventive retro-style film that follows three restless young people cruising the streets of Mexico City during the 1999 student strikes in a search for their childhood idol, an enigmatic folk singer. Whimsical, with striking cinematography.

Hilarious Mexican box-office smash by the director of Infierno about political corruption and media collusion with the government. The themes of this satire are universal, however. A long film but not a dull moment.

In this edgy dark comedy, two paranoid men join forces to rescue their families from a tropical paradise, after becoming convinced that an American timeshare conglomerate has a sinister plan to take their loved ones away.

Ingrid left software engineering at age 43 to devote herself to language learning and travel. Her goal is to speak seven languages fluently. Currently, she speaks English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian, and is studying Latin.

Highlights the role of art and artistic endeavors in communities of poverty and disorder. Creates empathy for an individual's loss of identity, deprivation, and aloneness. Reflects the devastating challenges of immigration for those with no connections to their new home.

Main character is a leader who is resilient, determined, compassionate, proud of his heritage, and spirited, until events beyond his control upend his life and important role in his community. With few resources and circumstances continually working against him, he battles to regain his individuality and find a new place in the world.

Violent sequences include teens threatened at gunpoint and shoved into a car; rioting, a drive-by killing with blood and bodies. Teens are chased, bullied. Gang conflict creates constant tension in a community.

Characters, including underage teens, drink in multiple sequences. Marijuana is used. A teen boy sniffs an unidentified substance he purchased in a paint store. Cigarette smoking. Alcohol and drugs are discussed. Central community is run by feuding drug cartels; drug atmosphere is pervasive.

Parents need to know that I'm No Longer Here is a Spanish language drama with English subtitles. The film tells the story of a teen forced by gang violence to leave his native Monterrey, Mexico and emigrate to the borough of Queens, New York City. The action takes place in both cities, intercutting present and past (in flashbacks). Dance as a means of both artistic expression and communal connection (specifically "cumbia," a Latin dance originated in Colombia) is integral to the story. Violence impacts the hero's journey with a bloody drive-by multi-victim gang shooting, teens abducted at gunpoint, chases, bullying, and the threat of gang revenge. Profanity and insults are frequent, including such words and phrases as "f--k," "s--t," "d--k," "p---y," "j--king off," "a--hole," "c--ks." Characters, including underage kids, drink alcohol, smoke marijuana, get drunk, sniff an unidentified substance, and smoke cigarettes. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.

Ulises (Juan Daniel Garcia Trevino), a highly original, colorful 17-year-old, loves to dance in I'M NO LONGER HERE. Steeped from early childhood in the rhythms and movements of "cumbia" a stylized Latin dance from Colombia, Ulises leads a band of energetic, fun-loving teens and kids in his community of Monterrey, Mexico. It's a "gang" of sorts, but a nonviolent gang, its members rootless but devoted to Ulises, to one another, and to their distinctive music. They roam the streets of Monterrey where other more violent, warring drug gangs flourish as well. After Ulises inadvertently runs afoul of one of the city's most violent cartels, his life is in danger and he's forced to leave the country. He makes his way to the United States -- Borough of Queens, New York City. Though he's alone and speaks no English, he temporarily finds menial work and a place to live. However, Ulises's "unique appearance," quiet manner, and "oddball" music don't sit well with the local Hispanic young men. It isn't long before job, shelter, and money are gone; he's on his own in an unforgiving place. A chance encounter with Lin (Xueming Angelina Chen), a Chinese girl with a bright smile and an open heart, brings temporary solace and shelter, but not for long. The challenges to both his survival and his carefully nurtured identity continue to mount.

A remarkably soulful lead performance, a heartfelt story about the loss of home and community, along with stunning camerawork, combine to create an original work with lasting resonance. Juan Daniel Garcia Trevino, in his first movie, is quietly devastating; Ulises is a strikingly original character. His kid-and-teen "gang mates," all acting novices, too, hold their own with vibrant spirit. Transitions from present to past to an even earlier past are confusing at first, but there's a certain rhythm and look to the format that becomes clear as I'm No Longer Here moves forward. Director Fernando Frias's efforts at authenticity make the film seem slow, even unfocused at times, but he mostly accomplishes what he set out to do. An atypical young man in danger of losing his individuality, his survival, and his place in the world is always worth checking out.

Families can talk about the film's two cities as "characters" in I'm No Longer Here. How did each location impact the story? How did the residents of such different environments embody the issues Ulises faced? What distinguishing features of both cities made each so specific?

Immigration and deportation are currently important issues in the U.S. How does this movie personalize the plight of fleeing immigrants? Did getting to know Ulises and watching his story unfold heighten your empathy for him and others like him?

Think about the film's transitions from Monterrey to Queens and back again. Since the viewer was transported from one to the other without any onscreen help (i.e., written dates or places), what techniques did the filmmaking team use to distinguish the cities from one another? Talk about lighting, production design, music.

Mon Laferte, te amo is a documentary based on the life struggles of the Chilean-Mexican musician Mon Laferte. The singer had a brutal childhood with abuse, but she grew up to become a music idol. The documentary is about to make its debut on August 1, 2024.

The film on the life of the artist, who overcame a disturbing childhood and transformed her life into a successful journey, is directed by Camila Grandi and Joanna Reposi Garibaldi and produced by Jaime Villarreal and Jose Antonio San Miguel.

Norma Monserrat Bustamante Laferte, known as Mon Laferte, was born on May 2, 1983. Mon Laferte is a Chilean and Mexican musician, singer, songwriter, and painter. The musical genre of the artist is versatile, as she used to cover different types of music, including pop, rock, bolero, cumbia, and salsa. During the 2010s, she became well-known for her theatrical flair and compelling stage presence.

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