CFF screening - short review - MARGARITA by Dominique Cardona and Laurie Colbert

Gay, beautiful, smart, Mexican Margarita seems to be the ultimate 21^st century Mary Poppins seems to be the perfect nanny. Despite this, overwhelmed by their financial struggles, the family she works for reluctantly decides to fire her. At the same time, her closeted girlfriend refuses to take their relationship to the next level or even embrace her homosexuality in public. Her life gets suddenly more complicated after an accident reveals her as an illegal immigrant and authorities want to have her deported.

Yes, Margarita could have been a very dark movie indeed but in the end Cardona and Colbert seem much more interesting in establishing a warmer and much more upbeat connection between the characters and the audience. This is also achieved through the very likeable performances by the cast, headed by an impressive Nicola Correia Damude in the titular character role.

The result thankfully is not only charming but also credible and respectful of the serious themes it deals with. Perhaps more remarkably, however, is its genuinely funny sense of humour, hence avoiding of the biggest setbacks of the vast majority of similar films – straight or gay. It must also be noted that it’s nice to see a good film with a lesbian lead character that doesn’t end in tragedy, isn’t surrounded by controversy or come across as blatant exploitation.