Fallen Fruit is the feature film debut from writer/director Chris Molina. This is a sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, and always convincing story of a young man in flux, as he finds himself at a crossroads much too early in life.
Drawing from the director’s own life experiences, Molina’s quite interesting film tells the story of 20-year-old Alex (an excellent Ramiro Batista), a brokenhearted gay man who has returned to Miami after living in New York. It is a bad breakup that brought him back to the Sunshine State where he grew up and one that has thrown him emotionally off course. Leaving New York meant giving up on his B.A., which his mother (Nicole Quintana) seems less than happy about. His parents certainly love him, but they want their son to go back out into the world and learn to survive on his own. Making things even more distressing is his childhood friend and sole confidant Sam (Krystal Millie Valdes). The two are close and it is good for Alex to be near her, but Sam announces she is about to leave for a job in California. Valdes and Batista work well together, the two actors giving their characters’ relationship a lived-in feel while the screenplay gives them a natural canvas to allow their performances to breathe life.
After getting fired from a job on his first day, Alex finds work at a gay rights organization, a place where he can be amongst his peers and possibly do some good. He also meets Chris (a charming Austin Cassel) which could be “love at first sight”, or maybe it is just Alex being vulnerable and still stinging from his recent uncoupling.
Feeling alone, one day Alex finds his father’s (Ozzie Quintana) old camcorder, which becomes both his psychiatrist and (as John Sebastian once wrote) his “darling companion”. The young man tries to find focus in his life through confessionals to himself and anyone who may find these videos once he moves on. As a hurricane looms over Miami, the course of Alex’s future will be decided, as long as the self-defeating young man will allow the change.
Molina has an innate understanding of his characters and designs his film with a focused and perceptive ear regarding how people relate to one another. The director captures the attraction between Alex and Chris through patient means, softly unspooling their relationship by focusing on the quieter moments. Their conversations have a natural flow and the dialogue spoken between them is intoxicatingly written and performed.
As Alex slowly realizes that he is the captain steering the course of his own life, it becomes evident how Fallen Fruit crafts him as a symbol of change. While the people in his life are forced to take stands on their relationships with him, Alex’s perspective slowly changes regarding his potential and ability to live as an adult. All the while, the symbolic hurricane bearing down on him like the impending weight of his future.
Cinematographer David Ricardo Rodriguez gives the film a naturalistic aura. The camera moves within its surroundings, breathing with the characters until people, time, and place become one with the story. Rodriguez’s style softly captures the essence of Miami and the humanity of the characters.
Chris Molina has crafted an honest character piece and one that is rich in character and humanity. The filmmaker does not judge Alex, nor does he ask for pity. We all know people like Alex, and sometimes, even if they are dear to us, we must let our friends work it all out at their own pace.
Containing a refreshing intimacy rarely found in today’s pictures, Fallen Fruit is a sweet and delicate piece infused with truth, emotion, and a beating heart.
Fallen Fruit
Written & Directed by Chris Molina
Starring Ramiro Batista, Krystal Millie Valdes, Austin Cassel, Nicole Quintana, Ozzie Quintana, Adrian Menendez, Joanne Perrica
NR, 87 Minutes, Mango Sun Productions