Pablo has fallen in love with Francisco. No, it is not another coming of age movie about a love affair during the summer vacation. And no, it is not about going to the mountains to secretly explore one’s sexuality. „Temblores“ by Jayro Bustamante from the Panorama section is an ugly truth; it hits you in the face from the first shot: Pablo, a married man in his late 30s has just come out to his deeply religious evangelical family in Guatemala. Pablo has to undergo the therapy session at the local church to become normal again.

I could not stop crying the whole movie. I was torn between different perspectives and it was impossible to choose a side – all of them touched me. I could understand why Pablo’s wife did not allow Pablo to see the children, I could understand why Pablo cannot cut off his ties with the family and the church. Jayro Bustamante is convincing. He also seems to control our emotions visually – the images are hopeless and grim.

Some movies about gay people are all about hot guys making out, but this is not the case here. Jayro Bustamante goes until the end to make you feel the struggle of being gay in Guatemala; sometimes we hear the director’s voice through the children, sometimes he says a lot with a silence. And trust me, both are excruciating. I appreciated that „Temblores“ does not sugarcoat the experience of being gay, and it is up to us to decide if we are ready to face it.

Text by hagados