Direction: Simón Mesa Soto
Country: Colombia
Not without humor and acerbic social commentary, A Poet marks the second feature by Colombian writer-director Simón Mesa Soto, who previously garnered awards at Cannes, Havana and Chicago with Amparo (2021). Led by Ubeimar Rios—a non-professional actor portraying an alcoholic, immature, and washed-up poet with an unsympathetic face, a crooked posture, and a weary gait—the film offers a slice of tumultuous life shaped by a complicated man striving to become better.
Oscar Restrepo (Ríos), financially dependent on his elderly mother, leads a solitary existence. He fails not only to gain recognition as a poet and to stop drinking, but also to connect with his daughter, who is preparing to leave for college. Yet his fundamentally kind nature compels him to help a talented young student after reluctantly accepting a position teaching philosophy. There is failure here, certainly, but also a quiet sense of dignity.
Shot over the course of a month on grainy 16mm—lending a nostalgic texture—the film stands out for its cunning and the strength of its writing. Soto crafts something oblique, downbeat, and offbeat, infused with darkly comic and cynical observations. Emotional turmoil abounds, yet not a moment feels wasted; even the humor carries an undercurrent of awkwardness. Nervy, imaginative, and sensitive, A Poet is an outrageously original comedy-drama that draws something unexpected from the tensions between social classes.
