Familia de medianoche
Directed by:
Luke LorentzenScreenplay:
Luke LorentzenCinematography:
Luke LorentzenPlots(1)
With striking vérité camerawork, Midnight Family drops us directly into the frenetic nighttime emergency ecosystem of Mexico City. In the midst of high-speed ambulance rides, we meet the Ochoas, a ragtag family of private paramedics, who try desperately every day to be the first responders to critically injured patients. In a city where the government operates only 45 emergency ambulances for a population of over nine million, the family acts as a crucial - but unregistered - underground lifeline. But the job is riddled with police bribes and cutthroat competition. And even though the Ochoa family has a reputation for being trustworthy, they must reckon with the sudden escalation in bribes that could force them to wade into the ethically questionable practice of making money off of patients in dire straits. Midnight Family maintains a breathless speed and urgency throughout. The camera is always exactly where it needs to be, capturing the intense textures and thrills of rides and rescues until, with each repetition, a subtextual story emerges - of a family and a society under profound financial and moral duress. (Sundance Film Festival)
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A portrait of a family operating a private ambulance service in Mexico City. The saving of lives happens in parallel with the struggle for subsistence. The members of the family try not to lose their jobs and fall apart despite horrendous eating habits, lack of time, corrupt cops and patients who cannot or do not want to pay for their services. Outwardly, Midnight Family is a formally compact action thriller with a lot of adrenaline-fuelled rides through the congested streets of the city at night. On another level, the film employs numerous allusions to gently compose a complex picture of the healthcare system, which is teetering on the verge of collapse due to corruption, overloaded hospitals and a lack of medical personnel. Though it is the only part that takes place during the day, the film’s epilogue does not bring relief and hope, but rather only the beginning of the next cycle, which, without the necessary systemic changes, will be just as devastating as the one before. 85%
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