The Charro of Toluquilla
Fascinated by the reckless, ladies’ man lifestyle of the classic Mexican movie characters, Jaime García presents as a prototypical confident macho Mariachi who enjoys life lived around women, alcohol, and music. His evenings are spent charming audiences with his singing and his days tending to his beloved horses. But beneath his irreverent and libidinous flare, a sense of weariness is glimpsed as he anticipates the challenges in front of him. Jaime struggles to maintain a relationship with his estranged young daughter and her religious mother and to maintain his well-being as a HIV-positive man. In José Villalobos’ remarkable debut film, he profiles Jaime over five years. Through vivid and stylised perspectives of the two sides of Jaime’s existence, Villalobos paints a beautiful and emotional portrait of a man divided.