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Romería

Year: 2026

Running time: 114

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32538648

Michael says: “A young woman orphaned as a child, seeks information about her birth parents off the coast of Spain in order to apply for educational grants. She discovers a large family on her father’s side, with dark secrets that she slowly uncovers with the help of a magical cat!

“How can you not want to see a film with that kind of tagline? Carla Simón’s follow-up to 2002’s ALCARRÀS again explores the complex dynamics of a large family, this time seen through the eyes of Marina, who must prove parentage in order to receive a grant for her continued studies. She is thrown into the world of her father’s family who all have different takes and timelines for detailing his wild bohemian life. It’s not until she is led to her mother’s diary in a mysterious way that the truth unfolds.
“Llúcia Garcia does a nice job as the questing Marina, both integrating into family she never knew yet remaining distinctly apart from it. The segue into magical realism was beautifully done, and thrilling to be ushered in by the afore-mentioned magical cat. Marina’s foil… in reality a cousin, in the flashback telling her parents history, her father, is a striking young man credited only as Mitch, who plays in rock band called The Boston Babes. Cinematography capturing the Spanish isles gorgeously  adds much to the film, which while compelling tends to meander a bit. 3 1/2 cats
 
“Screened at the Brattle Theatre, IFFBoston 2026

Aaron says: “This was one of the highlights of my IFFB experience. In Romería, Marina travels from Barcelona to Galicia to reconnect with her late biological father’s family, uncovering buried histories and unresolved tensions along the way.

“Llúcia Garcia makes for a beguiling lead, unselfconscious and physically attuned to her environment; even her slightly unsteady gait and habit of drifting awkwardly into scenes become part of Marina’s tentative relationship to this new world. Director Carla Simón uses a loose, fly-on-the-wall style to capture a family whose warmth, friction, and closely guarded secrets spill into every gathering. The film’s coastal imagery has a tactile, sensory richness that reflects Marina’s awareness of unfamiliar textures, temperatures, and smells far removed from the Mediterranean.

“There’s even a magic cat and a surreal interlude. The subsequent flashback, though, runs too long and saps some of the dramatic tension from the present-day story. Detour aside, Romería remains a dreamy pleasure. 3.75 Cats“

 

 

Chris says: “In 2004, 18-year-old orphan Marina (Llúcia Garcia) visits the port city of Vigo, Spain. She’s meeting with her paternal grandparents to obtain a notarized signature for her to be recognized on her father’s death certificate so that she can attend university. Until now, she’s never met any of her blood relatives. They seem eager and welcoming to her—perhaps overly so as her grandparents want to shower her with money out of guilt or maybe as encouragement for her to keep silent about what little she knows of her parents, along with scattered clues she picks up on from her similarly-aged cousin Nuno (the single-monikered Mitch).

“She gradually pieces together a version of what happened between her parents that varies slightly from what she’s officially told. Then, the film shifts into magical realism at the initially casual appearance of a stray cat, an impetus for Marina and the audience to discover the truth, or at least a version of it (maybe Marina’s idealized one?). As with previous feature Alcarràs, director Carla Simón has a keen eye for composition and framing naturally beautiful landscapes with more depth than your average pretty picture. Despite that, Romería is pleasant but sometimes dramatically static until that shift in the third act. Apparently based on Simón’s own experiences, it didn’t entirely express the urgency of why it was being told or how it may have shaped her adulthood and career. However, the post-cat material nearly saved it; I would not have minded seeing an entire feature (or at least a short) squarely focused on that story. 3 cats

“(Janus Films will distribute this summer.)”

 

Romería

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