Leon and Olvido

Léon and Olvido (Jiménez and Lerralde) are twenty-something brother and sister; Léon has Down’s Syndrome. There’s no other family left; Olvido is caught between bills, a menial job, flaky boyfriend and the adoring, troublesome Léon. And that’s about it: the film has no narrative arc or ‘events’ to speak of (the provision of a revolver is the nearest thing to movie drama, and even then the rounds are blank); but Bermúdez’s unjudgemental framing of their lives is quietly impressive, so matter-of-fact that the siblings’ endless see-saw from fighting to flirting makes perfect sense. Even on the several occasions when Olvido tries to abandon Léon or bump him off, there’s no hint of criticism. Not a lot of optimism, either.