We
Are What We Are
Dir:
Jorge Michel Grau
2010
**
Was it Plato who said "I am what I am" or was it Popeye, I can never remember? Either way, We are what we are is nothing to do with those two upstanding fellows, it's about a family who like to eat people. I like a good cannibal film, although I can only think of three or four really good ones, this not being one of them. It's terribly slow. It meanders for so long it's no wonder they don't all starve to death or eat themselves. I think the intention was to make political statements and raise social issues in Mexico but its never that clear, or at least, they don't do so particularly well. I became interested in the film when I learned that Daniel Giménez Cacho was to play Tito the Coroner, a character that also appears in the brilliant horror film Cronos that was directed by Guillermo del Toro back in 1993. It is fair to say that We Are What We Are is no Cronos. In the opening scene, we see the father of the family as he dies on the sidewalk at a local shopping mall. At home, his family is wondering what has become of him. Dad (Humberto Yáñez) is a watchmaker who repairs watches at the local street market, and the family's sole means of support. As Dad has not appeared for the day's work, his children Alfredo (Francisco Barreiro) and Julián (Alan Chávez) head to the market. Julián gets into a fight with a customer who claims that his watch is three weeks overdue. The woman who runs the market appears and tells the boys to get out; the rent for their booth at the market is three weeks in arrears. When the boys arrive at home, their sister Sabina (Paulina Gaitán) enters in a state of shock and announces that their father has died. Their mother, Patricia (Carmen Beato), locks herself in her room while the children wonder who is going to provide for the family now - specifically, their meals. Dad would be the one who brought home human cadavers for the family to eat. In a local morgue, Tito the coroner and the director of the funeral home bring in Octavio and Owen, two police detectives. The coroner shows them a finger in a jar that was pulled from Dad's stomach. The detectives are asked to solve this cold case. Initially, they resist, but as the film continues, they become more interested in the fame that will come with solving it. Alfredo and Julián attempt to kidnap a homeless child from under a local bridge, but are chased off by the other children. Next, they attempt to kidnap a prostitute, who also resists until Julián punches and stuffs her into the back seat of their car. Back at home, the boys tie the prostitute to the kitchen table. Patricia comes in and beats the woman to death with a shovel, claiming that Alfredo doesn't know what he's doing, and that prostitutes are not appropriate for their special feeding ritual. Alfredo runs out while Julián and Sabina wrap the dead woman in a sheet. Julián and Patricia take the prostitute back to the corner where the boys picked her up and dump her in front of the other street workers. Patricia tells the women to leave her sons alone but the prostitute reports the incident to detectives Octavio and Owen. Alfredo then goes looking for another potential meal in a gay bar. Alfredo brings a young man home with him but Julián won't eat a homosexual. As Alfredo and Julián argue the point, an older man comes down from their mother's room. Alfredo's prey escapes while Patricia beats the older man over the head with a shovel and the family later kills him. As Sabina and Patricia prepare the man for eating, Alfredo and Julián chase after the gay man. The man runs to a fast food stand and asks the police to protect him. Detectives Octavio and Owen hear the call over their police radio and head to the scene. They decline to call for backup, as they want to keep the glory of the collar for themselves. Detective Octavio stops Alfredo and Julián in an alley but is shot by a beat cop who mistakes him for one of the cannibals. Detective Owen discovers Sabina and Patricia preparing their meal in a ritualistic fashion and the women subsequently kill him. Alfredo and Julián arrive home and Patricia insists on completing the ritual, but Alfredo drags her away to escape over the rooftops. The police break into the family's home and Julián shoots several of them before the family manages to hide upstairs. Their mother says that one must survive to carry on the ritual and flees to the rooftop. The prostitutes from earlier in the film see her escaping and pursue her. Meanwhile, Alfredo bites Sabina's neck. Julián, thinking Alfredo's attempting to eat Sabina, shoots Alfredo. The police kill Julián and take Sabina away in an ambulance, believing that she is a surviving victim. The next morning Patricia's body is discovered in a playground, beaten to death. At the end of the film, Sabina escapes from the hospital and is seen watching a young man in the local market, intent on her next meal. There are quite a few mixed messages here, the main one being that families don’t seem to be able to function without a father – which is ridiculous. The real problem is just how serious the film is. It needed a bit of dark humour, without it, it’s just too dark. For once I'm not upset that it was remade so soon after, as there is a good story in there somewhere and it would have been a shame not to tell it in an alternative way.
**
Was it Plato who said "I am what I am" or was it Popeye, I can never remember? Either way, We are what we are is nothing to do with those two upstanding fellows, it's about a family who like to eat people. I like a good cannibal film, although I can only think of three or four really good ones, this not being one of them. It's terribly slow. It meanders for so long it's no wonder they don't all starve to death or eat themselves. I think the intention was to make political statements and raise social issues in Mexico but its never that clear, or at least, they don't do so particularly well. I became interested in the film when I learned that Daniel Giménez Cacho was to play Tito the Coroner, a character that also appears in the brilliant horror film Cronos that was directed by Guillermo del Toro back in 1993. It is fair to say that We Are What We Are is no Cronos. In the opening scene, we see the father of the family as he dies on the sidewalk at a local shopping mall. At home, his family is wondering what has become of him. Dad (Humberto Yáñez) is a watchmaker who repairs watches at the local street market, and the family's sole means of support. As Dad has not appeared for the day's work, his children Alfredo (Francisco Barreiro) and Julián (Alan Chávez) head to the market. Julián gets into a fight with a customer who claims that his watch is three weeks overdue. The woman who runs the market appears and tells the boys to get out; the rent for their booth at the market is three weeks in arrears. When the boys arrive at home, their sister Sabina (Paulina Gaitán) enters in a state of shock and announces that their father has died. Their mother, Patricia (Carmen Beato), locks herself in her room while the children wonder who is going to provide for the family now - specifically, their meals. Dad would be the one who brought home human cadavers for the family to eat. In a local morgue, Tito the coroner and the director of the funeral home bring in Octavio and Owen, two police detectives. The coroner shows them a finger in a jar that was pulled from Dad's stomach. The detectives are asked to solve this cold case. Initially, they resist, but as the film continues, they become more interested in the fame that will come with solving it. Alfredo and Julián attempt to kidnap a homeless child from under a local bridge, but are chased off by the other children. Next, they attempt to kidnap a prostitute, who also resists until Julián punches and stuffs her into the back seat of their car. Back at home, the boys tie the prostitute to the kitchen table. Patricia comes in and beats the woman to death with a shovel, claiming that Alfredo doesn't know what he's doing, and that prostitutes are not appropriate for their special feeding ritual. Alfredo runs out while Julián and Sabina wrap the dead woman in a sheet. Julián and Patricia take the prostitute back to the corner where the boys picked her up and dump her in front of the other street workers. Patricia tells the women to leave her sons alone but the prostitute reports the incident to detectives Octavio and Owen. Alfredo then goes looking for another potential meal in a gay bar. Alfredo brings a young man home with him but Julián won't eat a homosexual. As Alfredo and Julián argue the point, an older man comes down from their mother's room. Alfredo's prey escapes while Patricia beats the older man over the head with a shovel and the family later kills him. As Sabina and Patricia prepare the man for eating, Alfredo and Julián chase after the gay man. The man runs to a fast food stand and asks the police to protect him. Detectives Octavio and Owen hear the call over their police radio and head to the scene. They decline to call for backup, as they want to keep the glory of the collar for themselves. Detective Octavio stops Alfredo and Julián in an alley but is shot by a beat cop who mistakes him for one of the cannibals. Detective Owen discovers Sabina and Patricia preparing their meal in a ritualistic fashion and the women subsequently kill him. Alfredo and Julián arrive home and Patricia insists on completing the ritual, but Alfredo drags her away to escape over the rooftops. The police break into the family's home and Julián shoots several of them before the family manages to hide upstairs. Their mother says that one must survive to carry on the ritual and flees to the rooftop. The prostitutes from earlier in the film see her escaping and pursue her. Meanwhile, Alfredo bites Sabina's neck. Julián, thinking Alfredo's attempting to eat Sabina, shoots Alfredo. The police kill Julián and take Sabina away in an ambulance, believing that she is a surviving victim. The next morning Patricia's body is discovered in a playground, beaten to death. At the end of the film, Sabina escapes from the hospital and is seen watching a young man in the local market, intent on her next meal. There are quite a few mixed messages here, the main one being that families don’t seem to be able to function without a father – which is ridiculous. The real problem is just how serious the film is. It needed a bit of dark humour, without it, it’s just too dark. For once I'm not upset that it was remade so soon after, as there is a good story in there somewhere and it would have been a shame not to tell it in an alternative way.
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