Samuel Kishi Leopo’s We Are Mari Pepa Out August 15th

WE ARE MARI PEPA IS AVAILABLE EVERYWHERE ON FANDOR & IN NYC THEATERS AT ANTHOLOGY FILM ARCHIVES ON AUGUST 15TH

Available August 15th EVERYWHERE on Fandor & Theatrically in NYC @Anthology Film Archives

Samuel Kishi Leopo’s first feature, expanded from his earlier short film, is a finely observed, heartfelt chronicle of the lives and loves of a group of school-age punk rockers in Guadalajara as they approach the transition into adulthood. Beautifully unhurried and uneventful, WE ARE MARI PEPA focuses on its protagonists’ milieu and on the rhythm of their daily lives rather than on contrived plot mechanics, observing as they make music (their sole song features the refrain, “Natasha, I wanna cum in your face!”), barely tolerate their uncomprehending families, kill time, and look for love. Having just completed their school year, the boys find themselves facing the daunting realities of growing up, in a world where they have few options and where they’re destined to grow apart from each other.

WE ARE MARI PEPA is distinguished above all by the terrific performances from its four teenage leads, whose astonishingly natural rapport with each other seems too genuine to be faked – indeed, that they happen to be real-life childhood friends lends the film a strong dose of documentary authenticity. Showing a sure hand in his direction of these non-professional actors, as well as a keen compositional eye and an indelible sense of place, Leopo has created a film that is both funny and bittersweet.