Grey Gardens (2009)

It’s rare that I’m as thoroughly surprised by a movie as I was by The Birthday Gift, a short film directed by Arianna Ortiz. In just 15 minutes, I came to know the characters well enough to genuinely feel for them and gasp at each twist. The film, which focuses on an Argentinian family during an intimate birthday dinner, efficiently captures the eccentricities of each character as well as the nuances of their interpersonal dynamics.

Soledad (Paula Pizzi) is visiting her daughter Gabriela (Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel) and her son-in-law Marty (Nate Santana) in Chicago. Soledad lives in Argentina with her husband, but has clearly been staying with the couple and their young child for an extended period of time. She is grating in the way mother-in-laws often are, asserting her own desires and expecting the grown children to adapt to her whims.

On this particular night, her self-absorption is justified. It’s her birthday, and to celebrate she invited two new friends over for dinner. The friends are a man named César (Ignacio Serricchio) and an older woman named Carolina (Adelina Feldman-Schultz), two people who claim to be fans of Gabriela’s work as a cellist.

From the start, there’s an odd connection between Carolina and Gabriela. The woman faints at the site of the girl and the camera focuses on their eyes as they lock and she comes to. It’s clear there’s a secret there. This tension carries forward throughout the night and into dinner, where eventually the truth is revealed.