Spoilers contained. When Camilo's girlfriend Pola decides she wants a week apart from him to evaluate their relationship, Camilo is devastated. His daily routine and undemanding night job at a video store have led to a complacent and undemanding lifestyle. Unexpectedly encountering Mikela, an unpredictable eccentric whom he rescues from a street fight, he invites her back to his apartment where she stays for several days. Their relationship failing to move beyond casual verbal exchanges, Camilo discovers Mikela had been institutionalized as a schizophrenic. While Camilo sleeps, Mikela steals his wallet and leaves, is picked up by a sexual predator and abandoned by the roadside. Camilo encounters Pola once again. An awkward sexual exchange occurs and Camilo flees his apartment, unsure if their relationship can be resurrected. Discovering that Mikela has been rescued and once again institutionalized, Camilo visits her but his approaches are met by blank silence. On the seventh day of the forced separation, Pola returns to Camilo once again and he accepts that their relationship can move on to another level.
This is a very good looking movie, with excellent cinematography. Filmed with a hand held camera, there are endless jump-cuts interspersed with titles indicating the timeline over the seven days of separation. The unusual approach to storytelling leaves one thinking that this is an extended experimental movie from newly graduated film school students. The acting of the principals, particularly Francisco Perez-Bannen as Camilo, is faultless. Alas, there are way too many scenes that provide information about the characters backgrounds but simply go nowhere. A lot of the dialog in these scenes appears to be improvised. And there are way too many quirky characters who appear to serve little purpose, particularly Mikela, who is very much of a blank. Presumably we are supposed to assume that Camilo's return to Pola is occasioned by his interaction with Mikela but her character is simply too understated and inconsequential to make any valid change to his psyche. Still, the look of the movie is wonderful and as stated before, the cinematography is first class. Would be interesting to see what else emerges from the hands of the participants in this Chilean venture.
