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Film: The Coffee Table (La mesita del comedor)
Year: 2022
Directors: Caye Casas
Writers: Cristina Borobia and Caye Casas
Starring: David Pareja, Estefanía de los Santos and Josep Maria Riera
Review:
This is a movie that I got the chance to see via screener thanks to Scott from Cinephobia Releasing. The title caught my attention. When I figured out that this was a horror film, I knew that I'd check it out. What I found interesting is that this got its official first screening at a film festival back in 2022. Its wide release is in 2024, so that gives me another to add to my list. I’ve also given it a second watch to see how it sits with me for the end of year.
Synopsis: Jesús (David Pareja) and María (Estefanía de los Santos) are a couple going through a difficult time in their relationship. Nevertheless, they have just become parents. To shape their new life, they decide to buy a new coffee table. A decision that will change their existence.
We jump right into this with our couple from the synopsis at a store looking at a coffee table. I'll be honest, it is hideous. The salesperson is played by Eduardo Antuña. He is making the table sound better than it is. To give more information about it, it has two golden women, who are naked that are holding up the glass. This couple bickers in front of this salesperson. We learn that Jesús wasn’t fully ready to have a child. María mostly decorated their house, with Jesús getting little details here and there. He was told that he could pick out any coffee table. Because she hates this one so much, he wants it even more. That is the one that is bought.
The movie then shifts to Jesús bringing up to their apartment. María refuses to help. It turns out that he's missing a screw. He called the store, saying that it wasn't in the box and that he needed it brought to him today. He cannot come back to get it. María decides to go to the grocery store since Jesús' brother and his new girlfriend are coming over to meet the baby. The child is left in the care of Jesús.
This is when tragedy strikes and it rocks Jesús to his core. He can't even move. He doesn't know what to do. There is a couple of storylines that complicate things further. I've already brought up that Jesús' brother Carlos (Josep Maria Riera) along with his vegan girlfriend Cristina (Claudia Riera) are coming over. There is also Ruth (Gala Flores) who is 13 years old. Her mother tells María that she's been moody about a boyfriend. This turns out to be Jesús. This teen is convinced that she is in love with him and that he feels the same back. She is misreading different things. This day cannot get any worse and tragedy looms.
That is where I'll leave my recap and introduction to the story. Where I want to start is re-iterating that I came into this one blind and I also believe anyone who sees this should. This movie was uncomfortable for me in the best way possible. It sets the stage about where this couple is currently. I've been here before with my wife. You just get in a rough spot and bicker constantly. Then this takes a nosedive into a dark event that rocked me to the core. I should say here, this affected me differently than most people, I'm sure. Please keep that in mind when going forward. I will also avoid spoilers.
Now that I've gotten that out of the way, this becomes a character study of Jesús for the most part. He knows everything that has happened. I could feel the weight of the pressure mounting on him. Things aren't good with María. By having their son, he has lost himself. A newborn completely changes things and we see that it has strained their relationship. What is interesting is the first reveal of what Ruth thinks, Jesús is annoyed and doing what he can to make her stop. She is misreading things. This is just another added wrinkle that complicates Jesús' life as he tries to figure out what to do after the event.
I'm going to shift over to talk about Pareja's performance here. He was great. Despite the bickering with María, I get the sense that he has a good sense of humor. He delicately manages talking with Ruth, keeping his cool there. After the event though, the amount of stress he's doing to not only hide what happened but try to figure out a way to reveal it. I've held on secrets and it can feel like the weight of the world on you. How this is presented made me feel that. I'm not always the biggest fan of comedy in my horror. Since this goes into the realms of dark comedy, it is perfect to help alleviate tension. It was well done.
Since this mostly focuses on Jesús and doesn't have the deepest story, let's shift to this to the other cast members. They push things to where it ends up. De los Santos and Pareja feel like an old couple. That helped me connect since I've been in that spot of a relationship. It feels real. The Rieras help complicate things even more when they come over. They are fun while also making it more difficult for Jesús to think. Antuña, Flores, Dilla and the rest of the cast also add their own quirky characters to this as well.
All that is left then is filmmaking. I thought this helped to build that atmosphere. We get the idea that the place they're living isn't big. That becomes even smaller when Jesús becomes stressed. I wanted to credit the cinematography and the framing there. Then to go along with this, they do good things with the sound design. There is a baby monitor that relays different conversations from earlier. They are almost haunting Jesús. That was good. We also have limited effects. They were good though. The blood looks real, which I appreciated.
What I’ll add from my second watch is that knowing the reveal, it still is a gut punch. This doesn’t have the same impact that I did with my first watch. That’s not to say that this still isn’t good though. I still enjoy seeing Jesús come to terms with what happened and how he will reveal this to María. It is also still completely heartbreaking.
In conclusion, I know I'm going to be higher than others on this. This movie has a simple story. It sets up the characters and then tragedy strikes. From there it becomes a character of Jesús as he tries to come up with a plan of what to do with different complications. Pareja carries the weight of this film on his shoulders. The rest of the cast help push things to where they end up. This was well made with the cinematography, framing, sound design and effects helping there. I don't think this will be for everyone. It just hit me perfectly.
My Rating: 8 out of 10