Roma (2018)

Roma is one of the most successful films in 2018 winning multiple awards. Winning 4 Baftas and 3 Oscars and being nominated for much more. It's story is simple, following a maid going about her life for a year in mexico. During this year her employers go through a lot of trouble ultimately trying to find themselves as well as Cleo (The maid) who gets pregnant and has the struggles of what that brings with it.

The thing that stood out for me was the great use of wide shots and one take shots where we would get a nice shot of an area. The reason this is important is because the film is trying to show what general life is like and the wide shots establish that Cleo is just another cog in the system. For example, we get an establishing shot a Mexican village, where a bus pulls up and Cleo steps off. This establishes where we are and what Cleo's plan of action is in the village when asks where to go. Instead of the camera cutting however it stays static waiting for Cleo to move right of the screen. This helps convey to the audience that she isn't necessarily the most important part of the film, but it's the attempt to capture life.

Another that really stuck out was the lack of any soundtracks. All the music that's presented is done through diegetic items such as radios and TVs and the piece is better off for it. Just like life, without music the audience can't predict what's going to happen. There's a scene where Cleo is threaten at gun pointing at her and without the music it creates suspense not knowing if she'll be shot or not.

I think its the focus on realism and lack of a genre that managed to encapsulate the audience. The best way I've heard it from the person I was watching it with was. "Its a film about a mundane life, who managed to discover more about herself as well as them around her in a year." It just goes a long way to show that a film about a life can be interesting if presented well.