The main character is a nameless boy (Juan Jose Ballesta) who was taught to steal wallets by his absent mother. He is able to do the trick effortlessly, using his "earnings" to survive while he looks for his mom. As he runs into an antique store owner, he might have found a trace that will lead to her. First, however, he will have to pull off a few "jobs" for the store owner, and he can't do it alone: enter a nameless girl (Maria Valverde) who gets to learn all the secret techniques the young boy has been using all his life.
Acting
Ballesta's silent desperation hits like a gut punch.
Direction
Marques makes Madrid's streets feel like a character.
Director
Jaime Marques
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was part of a 2000s wave of Spanish indie films exploring juvenile delinquency with poetic realism rather than exploitation.
María Valverde was only 14 during filming, making the romantic tension between the leads deliberately ambiguous — the film knows it's walking a tightrope.
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