Set in rural Mexico, the film is an exploration of a couple’s open marriage falling apart where the husband copes with his wife’s growing interest towards an American horse trainer as that relationship is also falling apart. It is a film that does not have much of a plot as Carlos Reygadas explores a rich couple who runs a ranch where they raise bulls for bullfighting, starting to fall apart as the open relationship starts to crack. Reygadas’ script does not play into traditional narrative schematics in favor of something that builds slowly as it explores the life of Juan (Carlos Reygadas) and Ester (Natalia Lopez) who invited the American horse trainer Phil (Phil Burgers) to observe their bulls for bullfights. Ester is enamored with Phil as she goes to Mexico City with him where their relationship becomes serious with Juan coping with the fact that his open marriage to Ester is starting to crack as they also have children. The film would also feature voice-over narration from not just two of Juan and Ester’s children, but also through corresponding letters among the adults in this affair that is starting to unravel.
Reygadas’ direction is wondrous for its usage of space as it is shot on various locations in Mexico including parts of Mexico City. Shot in a 2:39:1 aspect ratio, Reygadas creates a film that is slow-building in its narrative where he employs a lot of long takes in his shots as well as a lack of stylized editing in favor of a straightforward approach to allow shots to linger for a few minutes. Even as it plays into the drama where Reygadas would use wide and medium shots to observe the drama as well as scenes in the ranch where Juan and Ester look over things. Notably a scene where a bull goes wild and gores a mule to death as it would set the tone for the chaos that would loom throughout the film.
Reygadas also use close-ups for scenes shot in a car as it has this claustrophobic feel to play into a marriage that is about to implode. Given the film’s near-3 hour running time as it also includes a few sex scenes as it play into Juan’s growing jealousy as he is forced to confront his own contradictions as it relates to the many fallacies of open marriages. Notably in the third act where Juan’s voyeuristic tendencies has many drawbacks while its ending that involves bulls is a metaphorical one that raises more questions than answers. Overall, Reygadas crafts a riveting and evocative film about the disintegration of an open marriage.
Cinematographers Diego Garcia and Adrian Durazo, with additional work by Daniel Valdes, do incredible work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on natural lighting for many of the exteriors including some low-key lighting for some of the interior scenes in the day and night . Art director Emmanuel Picault does amazing work with the look of the home that Juan and Ester live filled with books and art work to play into a posh lifestyle. Costume designer Stephanie Brewster does excellent work in costumes as they are casual apart from the chaps and cowboy hats that Juan and other ranchers wear. Visual effects supervisor Diego Vazquez Lozano does terrific work with the visual effects for a few aerial scenes in Mexico City.
Sound designer Javier Umpierrez does phenomenal work with the sound in capturing the natural elements of the sound as well as how music sounds in a room or at a concert hall. The film’s music soundtrack features an array of classical pieces including one performed by an orchestra at a concert as well as music from an avant-garde Mexican performer who appears in the film and progressive rock music from Genesis and King Crimson.
The film’s wonderful ensemble cast largely consist of non-actors that includes Ernesto Vazquez as a farm boss, Blanca Villamil as the family maid/cook, Joaquin del Paso as a dying friend of Juan and Ester in Pablo, Maria Hagerman as Juanito’s girlfriend Lorena, Rut and Eleazar Reygadas in their respective roles as Juan and Ester’s younger kids in Lenora and Gaspar, and Yago Martinez as Juan and Ester’s teenage son Juanito who is experiencing first love as well as going to a boarding school outside of his life at the ranch. Phil Burgers is excellent as the American horse trainer Phil who befriends Juan and Ester where he is enamored with their relationship while enjoying a sexual relationship with Ester that has become complicated.
Carlos Reygadas is brilliant as Juan as a revered poet who runs a ranch as he becomes jealous of his wife’s affair with Phil where he delves into voyeuristic tendencies to the point that he starts to lose control of his emotions and his own need to control everything. Finally, there’s Natalia Lopez in an amazing performance as Ester as a woman whose affair with Phil has her raising questions about herself and her marriage where she starts to unravel as she wonders if she is being used while also realizing that the concept of open marriage has its faults.
Nuestro Tiempo is a spectacular film by Carlos Reygadas. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous visuals, intoxicating sound design, and a compelling study of an open marriage disintegrating. It is a film that is not easy to watch due to its methodically-slow pacing, lack of plot, and a near-3 hour running time that will not appeal to casual viewers. Yet, it is a film that does take its time to highlight a marriage that is on the verge of collapse due to decisions two people made at great risk in a style that requires patience and open interpretation. In the end, Nuestro Tiempo is a sensational film by Carlos Reygadas.
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