A Cuban kid literally crawls inside a sitcom to escape his own family. Therapy not included.
A bittersweet comedy in Spanish and English about a Cuban family that migrates to the United States. Robertico, Carmela and Roberto's youngest son, grow up feeling ashamed that his family might not be American enough. He has reached this conclusion by constantly watching American television and forming an opinion as to how Americans really are. Led by his desperation, he literally escapes into an American television sitcom in order to forget about his Cuban past. Not knowing what to do, his family prays to the Virgin Mary to ask for help. When the cultures clash, Robertico has to decide whether he is strong enough to withstand his own self-hatred, and learn not only self-esteem, but how to embrace his Cuban roots.
Acting
Olga Merediz's Carmela anchors the chaos with heartbreaking warmth
Direction
Oliver's sitcom-to-reality visual whiplash is genuinely unhinged
Writing
Bilingual script that weaponizes TV tropes against themselves
Director
Enrique Oliver
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Enrique Oliver's only feature film; he spent years in Spanish television before this singular, unclassifiable statement.
Released during the Elian Gonzalez media frenzy, the film's sitcom-escape reads as a direct response to how Cuban-American identity was being performed for mass consumption.
ES
