Summary
Caetano’s gritty character study has a stoic and effective turn from Diego Alsono. If only Togo‘s third act wasn’t such an underwhelming conclusion.
This review of the Netflix film Togo (2022) does not contain spoilers.
Netflix continues to offer a buffet of films from around the world — the streaming giant’s next latest is Togo (2022), the first original film in the country of Uruguay. This Spanish-language film heavily incorporates changing trends in the region and a healthy amount of afro-Uruguayan influences. However, at the story’s heart is a character study on aging, community, and the power of determination. If only Togo weren’t such an underwhelming experience, we might have had something truly extraordinary.
The film stars Diego Alsono as the titular character. Togo is a neighborhood ambassador of sorts. The man is a former boxer with a dangerous jab. He has gone not grey but utterly white with a gloriously full head of hair and beard to boot. Like The Old Man and the Sea, but more on that later. He is the “road attendant” who helps visitors and residents in and out of parking spaces. Togo has a limp and is well over his 60s. The man also has a daughter in rehab with bleak prospects. He will also clean your car, and all you owe him is a tip which amounts to pocket change. This is a position where you can loiter and beg for change under cover of honest work.
And it is, in a way. Togo does serve the purpose also of being a neighborhood watch. One night, he runs across a teenager who collapses, high on drugs, named Mercedes (Catalina Arrillaga). He offers her the location of a faucet and a piece of cardboard to sleep on. Togo has his setup and lives like Frodo Baggins under a giant sapling. He sleeps between the perfectly shaped roots of a tree in the park, offering excellent coverage while he sleeps under his dark blanket. But the massive spruce cannot protect him from a changing neighborhood. For example, he witnesses a local dealer being murdered a block or two away. It’s a group of Narcos who have moved into Togo’s territory. Soon, they take a block in front of the grocery store. Then comes a choice. Either start selling drugs for the group, leave, or be killed.
Written and directed by Israel Adrián Caetano (Bolivia), this is a character study on aging and mental health while telling a classic story of two people movingly connecting from different generations. For example, Arrillaga’s depressed Mercedes feels more at home, living as a transient in the park with Togo, than in her own home. The script also touches on community and socioeconomic influence, where the young woman is exposed to afro-Uruguayan culture within the community. For all its positive empathy and parenting for the young female characters, you will also see Togo is a noticeably masculine story with noticeable Hemingway influences. The elder statesman, turning older, can be viewed with that lens as he takes on a noticeable beast in the seaside country. He is a community protector and advocate. He has noticeably lousy luck, and he’s now taking his last stand.
However, while refreshingly straightforward, Togo’s third act wants to believe that no retribution will come to the film’s main character. While the script’s outline is engaging, with an electric opening sequence that sets the tone for the film, the scenes where Togo fights back are both plausible and eye-rolling. Are we to believe no revenge or redemption will come to the character? The final scene suggests some achievement but does not ring true. Especially with the risk involved, this pushes Togo to the edge, and everyone is still exposed with no resolve.
Overall, I’m on the fence about Caetano’s gritty character study with a stoic and effective turn from Diego Alsono. Togo can be an absorbing and suspenseful ride. And there’s nothing wrong with a film being hopeful, especially in this case. However, if you’re going to get your hands dirty, you’re walking away without some dirt under your fingernails.
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