‘Sujo’ Trailer: Mexico’s Lyrical International Oscar Pick Details the Life of a Cartel Orphan

The saga of the character of “Sujo” spans decades, all in the shadow of the cartel. Mexico submitted the lyrical film, from co-writers/directors Fernanda Valadez and Astrid Rondero, in the Best International Feature Oscar category. The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the World Cinema Grand Jury: Dramatic prize.

Here’s the official synopsis: “After a cartel gunman (Juan Jesús Varela) from a small Mexican town is murdered, Sujo, his beloved four-year-old son (Kevin Aguilar), is left an orphan and in danger. Sujo narrowly escapes death with the help of his aunt (Yadira Pérez) who raises him in the isolated countryside amidst hardship, poverty, and the constant peril associated with his identity. When he enters his teens (Juan Jesús Varela), a rebelliousness awakens in him, and like a rite of passage, he joins the local cartel. As a young man, Sujo attempts to make his life anew, away from the violence of his hometown. However, when his father’s legacy catches up with him, he will come face-to-face with what seems to be his destiny.”

Co-directors Valadez and Rondero said in a press statement that the film is a “tale of two origins: that of a name and that of a man.” Ximena Amann works as the film’s cinematographer, with Juan Jesús Varela starring as Sujo.

As the filmmakers said, “It is an episodic film, and that’s one of the aspects that excited us the most as directors: Our goal in this film was to explore narratively, formally, and visually. Sujo has a visual narrative that changes as the episodes change as if every secondary character were a season in Sujo’s life. We wanted each episode to have its atmosphere. And as we were exploring texture, light, and mood, we
decided to shoot each episode with a different set of lenses that were key in that exploration. In the end, the whole film is a portrait of this young man, Sujo. A portrait but also a promise of the man he deserves to be.”

“A work of tremendous lyrical potency, even more intricate in meaning and scope than the pair’s earlier stunner, ‘Sujo’ thunderously demonstrates why Valdez and Rondero stand among those soon to be regarded as the new masters of Mexican cinema,” the IndieWire review reads.

“Sujo” will be released by The Forge in select theaters in the U.S. and Canada on November 29. Check out the trailer, an IndieWire exclusive, below.