Déficit

Déficit, Gael Garcia Bernal’s directorial debut, casts the actor as Cristobal, an affluent layabout who holds a party at his parents’ palatial estate and soon finds himself at the center of several mini-crises. Infused with an ultra low-rent visual sensibility and a distinctly free-wheeling sort of vibe, Déficit is one of those movies that takes an awfully long time to get going – as the viewer is initially confronted with a series of characters that are far from likeable. But there comes a point at which it becomes exceedingly difficult not to get caught up in the fun-loving high jinks of these people, with the presence of several decidedly down-to-earth figures (primarily in the form of the family’s servants) ensuring that the whole thing never quite becomes a Mexican variation on Rules of the Game. Having said that, it’s just as clear that the movie starts to seriously fizzle out as it passes the one-hour mark – particularly as Bernal’s emphasis on the drug-fueled escapes of the characters becomes increasingly tiresome. Still, given just how flat-out ugly the visuals tend to be, one can’t help but marvel at just how entertaining Déficit sporadically is – though the inclusion of an admittedly charming moment lifted directly from Garden State is puzzling, to say the least.

**1/2 out of ****