“Only optimists commit suicide. Optimists who can no longer be optimists. The rest, having no reason to live, why should they have a reason to die?”
These are the first words of the film, the ones Sebastian reads in E. M. Cioran’s book The Problem of Birth, in which the philosopher theorizes that birth is the ultimate “absurd accident” and that any attempt at suicide is too late. I search on the Internet for “how to commit suicide in Mexico.”
We are in the park at Mexico Citywhere is the chilean director Sebastian Silva he lives both in the film and in reality, in a house run by his friend Mateo. He also manages his own eighth feature film – V Rotting in the sun (literally Rot in the sun) Silva also plays himself, a director lacking money and creativity and a ketamine addiction who makes ends meet by painting.
In fact, a few minutes after the opening theme, we witness the protagonist’s first psychedelic “trip” as he lies on his bed with images flowing and fluctuating in his head, almost as if they were in a kaleidoscope, while his friend tries to wake him up . “Being poor and an artist? This is disgusting,” Mateo tells him, who has nothing to advise his friend except to go and commit suicide on the beach of Zicatela in Puerto Escondido.
And Sebastian leaves, hoping to quickly escape the world with a dose of pentobarbital. The film’s setting is largely fictional, although it is based on a real-life “weird” nudist spot in the province of Oaxaca, which in the film means a continuous sequence of shots of penises (the same ones that seem to have caused quite a stir at Sundance).
But it is here that a new opportunity opens up for Sebastian when he meets an irreverent, powerful gay man. Jordan Firstman (nomen omen), which the director mercilessly criticizes. Perstman also plays himself in the film, questioning and ridiculing—more or less consciously—his image as a modern queer icon: between rough, extreme and wildly sexy footage and a very lively editing, and, despite the ultra-depressive premises, the film here begins to reveal a clearly more joyful aspect.
Jordan, in fact, exudes such a joie de vivre that it’s certainly not easy to imagine what kind of exchange he could ever have with the dark and misanthropic Sebastian. But there is something about the former that strongly attracts the director, who ultimately gives in to Perstman’s persistent requests to collaborate on his show. However, when Jordan returns to Mexico City, Sebastian is nowhere to be found, and Jordan goes on a real hunt for the endless metropolis. We won’t reveal anything more here about how the somewhat crude, but not banal, story of this courageous low-budget punk feature film continues. If not the main change in taste, then this in the second part it gets closer and closer to a pulsating thriller.
Exclusively on MUBI from September 15th.. Rotting in the sun From Sebastian Silva (Affection and MaliceThat, Crystal Fairy and Magic Cactus, nasty child) and produced Jacob Wasserman (My mother’s eyes, Tyrell), star writer and social media phenomenon Jordan Firstman in his first leading rolefrom the same Sebastian Silva and from Catalina Saavedra (Housemaid).
Producer: Hidden Content and The Liftin collaboration with Robert Pattinson’s production company Icki Eneo Arlo, Spacemaker Productions and Caffeine Post, Rotting in the sun its world premiere took place in Sundance 2023 V Premieres section. Silva returns to Sundance for the fifth time, where he has already won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize and the Director Award.