© Still from the film by DoP: Rosa Hadit Hernández © Colectivo Colmena
Sexual assault remains one of the most urgent and complex issues facing young people today. Despite increased awareness, it is still shrouded in silence, confusion, and contradiction. More troubling still, it often arises not from the outside, but within spaces meant to feel safe. More troubling still, it often occurs within spaces meant to feel safe, blurring boundaries and leaving both victims and those around them unsure how to respond.
Mexican director Fernanda Tovar’s debut feature “Sad Girlz” (“Chicas tristes”) explores these themes with remarkable subtlety and sensitivity. Currently screening in the International Narrative Competition at Tribeca Festival in New York City, the film previously won the Crystal Bear for Best Film in the Generation 14plus section at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The film opens with sixteen-year-olds Paula (Darana Alvarez) and Maestra (Rocio Guzman), both delivering outstanding performances. Moving through Mexico City’s Coapa district as if joined at the hip, they share a carefree existence shaped by years of swimming and everyday companionship. As they prepare to compete at the Junior Pan American Swimming Championships in Brazil, their days are split between rigorous training and the rhythms of teenage life—hanging out, laughing, going to parties, and talking about boys. Their bond seems unbreakable, until a disturbing incident forces them to confront difficult questions about trust, loyalty, and selfhood.
Maestra is the more extroverted and emotionally open of the two, while Paula is quieter, more guarded, and still inexperienced when it comes to intimacy. Drawn to fellow swimmer Daniel (Lucio Lemus), Paula hopes to take a step closer to him at a party—but what follows leaves her subtly altered. The shift is not dramatic, but deeply felt: she grows more withdrawn, weighed down by confusion and unable to articulate what has happened, even to Maestra. At one point, she hesitantly admits, “Maybe I don’t like sex,” a line that captures both the uncertainty and her attempt to make sense of the experience.
Rather than focusing on the incident itself, the film turns to its emotional aftermath, tracing the uncertainty, self-doubt, and quiet isolation that follow. The film gradually shifting its perspective toward Maestra, who struggles to understand Paula’s silence while grappling with her own sense of injustice and the urge to act. In doing so, the film feels fresh, avoiding sensationalism and unfolding instead with a slow, unsettling intensity.
For a feature debut, Tovar’s direction is impressively assured, with a strong focus on atmosphere, striking cinematography, and carefully composed images by Rosa Hadit Hernández. Much of the film’s power lies in what remains unsaid, with its formal choices balancing youthful energy against darker emotional undercurrents. Several sequences stand out, particularly a beautifully staged dance class scene in which Paula confides in Maestra, as well as the haunting underwater passages set to Brazilian music, which linger long after the film ends.
“Sad Girlz” approaches the complex aftermath of sexual assault with compassion, showing how such experiences need not fully define a person. Paula suffers—at times withdrawing from school and training—but she is still able to find moments of lightness with Maestra. The surrounding confusion, and at times absurdity, only deepen the film’s impact, while the undercurrents of patriarchy quietly shape the world around the girls.
Daniel behaves as though nothing has happened, continuing to pursue Paula, kissing her on the cheek and reacting with hurt when she pulls away. Maestra, meanwhile, struggles to channel her anger, raising the issue with a tough, female coach who responds with a striking lack of empathy. As in much of the film, the adults remain notably absent.
At its core, the film is a quietly affecting portrait of friendship, capturing both its intimacy and its limits. Paula and Maestra’s bond feels genuine, yet even the closest relationships can falter in the face of experiences that are so difficult to articulate. In the end, the film suggests a fragile resilience—learning to keep moving at the right pace, even when the water feels uncertain.
© Still from the film by DoP: Rosa Hadit Hernández © Colectivo Colmena
Grade: B+
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