The cinematic contrast between America and Latin America was on tragic view at the Maine International Film Festival on Saturday.

By Paul Dervis

This past March Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts presented a Latin American film festival that pointed out succinctly the differences in form and substance between what South American artists were producing versus what our commercial film industry is dishing out. Okay, it is not wholly fair to compare the two; after all, we also have a thriving independent cinema. But the art films on display from south of the border clearly had respectable budgets and a knack for casting  strong (and well known) leading actors.

The cinematic contrast between us and them was on tragic view at the Maine International Film Festival (through July 19) on Saturday. The differences were stark and discouraging — for America.

Screened to a full house, the Argentinian ‘a day in the life’ film El Incendio was nothing less than a powerhouse. First time feature director Juan Schnitman had masterful control of the material, and writer Augustina Liendo handed him as tight a script as you will encounter these days. The plot was simple, yet moving, and intriguing subplots added delicate nuances to the story.

Lucia and Marcelo are a young Buenos Aires couple on the eve of purchasing their first home. But all is not well between them, and this impending life-altering move generates an enormous amount of anxiety. Lucia comes from a upper middle class family but works as a cook. She has borrowed a considerable chunk of the down payment from her folks — and Marcelo resents it. Although he’s a teacher, he comes from working class stock and out of resentment  has forced her into having less and less to do with her family. Marcelo won’t even socialize with them.

The closing date for their new condo is delayed for twenty four hours, and the film focuses on this day. Lucia is so unsettled about her commitment to the relationship and moving into a new home that she begins to cough up blood; meanwhile, Marcelo gets into trouble at school for manhandling a teenage boy. And then there is safeguarding the money! They are putting down cash (U.S. dollars, a safer economy, go figure). They need to keep it in their apartment for the day and both are paranoid about thieves.

This film works brilliantly on a number of levels: it is a human interest story; a socio-political commentary on Argentina; a compelling mood piece; there’s a touch of a thriller here as well. The director keeps it all moving along seamlessly. Like a master chef slowly and patiently cooking a rich sauce, Schnitman lets the screenplay’s subtleties pop and bubble. And the cast supports his every move with a simmering intensity. Both Pilar Gamboa and Juan Barberini give us characters filled with interesting quirks; they relish serving up each bit of unpredictability. The opening shot suggests that you are in for something terrific. The two are in bed: Marcelo lying face down, his tattoos, displayed on his back, suggesting anger and buried violence; Lucia, lying still, wide awake, staring at the ceiling. Theatregoers may well recognize these two figures…it is as if Jimmy and Alison Porter of Look Back in Anger fame were young and in South America today.

A scene from the new rom-com “Sleeping With Other People.”

Which brings us to Sleeping with Other People. The film would like you to think that it a sexually hyper-charged comedic romp. It certainly has more than its fair share of sex scenes. But, in truth, there is less skin on view here than you will see in your typical cable television series. So, despite the  ribald marketing, this film, in its plastic heart of hearts, is just another formula-driven romantic comedy. On that front, it is hampered by the lack of chemistry between its leads, Jason Sudeikis and Alison Brie. It is hardly a surprise to find Will Ferrell as the producer.

The so-called story goes that Jake and Lainey had lost their respective virginities to each other at college fifteen years before the start of the film. They fell out of touch and both became promiscuous. Then they are reacquainted with each other at a self help meeting. They become friends, promise to not ruin the comradeship with sex, and go about their separate partner searches. Unless you have been on another planet for the past 30 years you probably can guess what happens.

Now, I enjoy a good romantic comedy as much as the next guy (maybe even more). The problem is that there is nothing comic or sexy here. Sleeping with Other People is filled with tired jokes; the supporting characters come from central casting; the plot line has been recycled hundreds of times. Sudeikis knows his way around a punch line and he manages, through skill and determination, to keep the movie afloat. He gets no help from Brie, who is incapable of keeping up her side of the romance.

The movie was written and directed by Leslye Headland, who wrote and directed Bachelorette, but here she seemed to have little idea of what she was doing. Even the film’s first scene forecast doom: we are given a college dorm flashback where our two leads do the dirty. Well, Brie can pull off nineteen, but the forty-year-old (and looking every day of it) Sudeikis cannot come close. It was unintentionally farcical to see him dressed like a kid, complete with funky haircut…if the director and cast members had played the adolescent look for laughs it might have worked.

The sad cultural reality is that the American moviegoers will get plenty (too many) opportunities to see Sleeping… but will have few chances to see El Incendio. Unless they visit a festival, and there’s the rub.

Paul Dervis has been teaching drama in Canada at Algonquin College as well as the theatre conservatory Ottawa School of Speech & Drama for the past 15 years. Previously he ran theatre companies in Boston, New York, and Montreal. He has directed over 150 stage productions, receiving two dozen awards for his work. Paul has also directed six films, the most recent being 2011’s The Righteous Tithe.