Because Sanity is Overrated
In a twist that no one (or perhaps everyone) expected, Fernanda Castillo has come out to defend what any accountant or concerned parent would call “a terrible life decision”: being an actor. The protagonist of “A Woman Without a Filter” and “Dulce Familia”, in a burst of sincerity that smacks of group therapy, has admitted that yes, acting is crazy. But don’t be alarmed, dear readers, it’s the good kind, the kind that makes you “bloom.”
And what does “flourish” mean in this context? Well, apparently, embracing economic and emotional instability as if it were nutritious fertilizer for the soul. “I guess I share this with my colleagues,” Fernanda muses, probably while balancing one foot on a financial cliff. “Not only when we started, it’s crazy to keep doing it. And every time you finish a job, a character and a process, it’s crazy to start again.” A real roller coaster, but without the safety of a seat belt… and where the prize is, hopefully, the next rent payment.
But here is the revelation: “But I believe it is in that instability that we flourish and find ourselves and get excited.” Of course, who hasn’t felt that spark of existential emotion when checking the bank account and seeing a balance that alternates between “feast” and “air diet”? Castillo concludes with a rhetorical question that would make any insurance agent cringe: “I think that, if I didn’t have that, this profession wouldn’t be what it is, right?” No, Fernanda, it definitely wouldn’t be what it is. It would be a stable and predictable job, like accounting or notary work, and then what would they talk about in the interviews?
A Collective Project for Elegant Crazy Women
These profound reflections did not arise out of nowhere, but are the intellectual appetizer for “Las Locuras”, the next film by Rodrigo García that will land on Netflix on November 20. The feature film, a kind of luxury madhouse in film format, is made up of six stories of women who, in their boring daily lives, reach that magical breaking point and do things… unsuspected. Because, let’s be honest, what woman hasn’t fantasized about throwing the perfect dinner she just cooked out the window or responding with absolute honesty to a “does that look good on you?”?
For this acting tour de force, García has brought together the best of Mexican cinema, creating what seems like a supergroup of interpretive neurosis. Parading alongside Castillo are Ilse Salas (“Good Girls”), Adriana Barraza (“Amores Perros”), Ángeles Cruz (“Tamara and Catarina”), Naian González Norvind (“Leona”) and Cassandra Ciangherotti (“The Widows of Thursdays”).
And speaking of Ciangherotti, she contributes her grain of sand to acting psychology with a pearl of wisdom: “I feel that there is something in which as an actress there is like a latent desire to cry, it is an impressive thing, that is, because we need it.” There you have it, ladies and gentlemen. It’s not emotional instability, it’s a professional need to cry in the car on a Tuesday afternoon. “Then all of a sudden, I swear any weekday day we’re in the car, we’re suddenly crying, imagining our kids being taken away from us or something terrible happening.” Because, of course, what better way to prepare for a possible dramatic role than by generating self-inflicted trauma in the middle of traffic?
The Origins of Lost Sanity
Behind this tribute to the disconnection from reality is the mind of Rodrigo García (“Family”), who, being the son of the legendary Gabriel García Márquez, clearly inherited the gene of weaving magical realities where the ordinary becomes extraordinary. The initial spark, he tells us, was not a psychology manual, but a friend with a bipolar energy outbreak. Because nothing inspires a dramatic comedy more than taking a close look at a mood disorder.
“It was seeing a person who is having that outbreak and the influence it has on the people around them,” García explains with the naturalness of someone describing the inspiration for a cooking recipe. “So, I always thought it was a day in the life of this person; I didn’t know if it was going to be all in her (one of the characters’) house or if they were going to be intertwined, but already writing, well naturally it gave a story, another story, another story.” This is how the muse of creativity works: a little extraneous personal chaos, a touch of unsolicited observation, and voilà!, you have a script ready for Netflix.
The film, produced by Pablo Zimbrón and Gerardo Gatica, promises to be that distorted mirror where we can see ourselves reflected in our most… let’s say, authentic moments. Because deep down, who hasn’t felt like throwing aside the chains of sanity and doing something completely irrational, even for a moment? These six women will do it for us, with the elegance and drama that only Mexican cinema can provide.
In the end, the message of “The Follies” and its protagonists seems to be one: in a world that demands sanity, productivity and stability from us at all costs, perhaps the true madness is to pretend to be completely sane. Or, as an actor would say between jobs, “stability is an illusion, but the next project is what counts.”
So get ready for November 20, when we can dive into these stories and hopefully feel a little saner when comparing ourselves to the characters. Or perhaps, quite the opposite.
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