Which is why I can see many English users saying they think the movie is flat. A very good movie.
The Chambermaid
2018 [SPANISH]
Action / Drama
Plot summary
Eve, a young chambermaid at a luxurious Mexico City hotel, confronts the monotony of long workdays with quiet examinations of forgotten belongings and budding friendships that nourish her newfound and determined dream for a better life.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
January 11, 2021 at 09:44 PM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.WEB 1080p.WEBMovie Reviews
The English subtitles leave out most of the plot
Everything happens inside the Intercontinental Hotel
The Mexican film La camarista (2018) was shown in the U. S. with the translated title The Chambermaid. It was co-written and directed by Lila Avilés.
Gabriela Cartol stars in the title role. She portrays a young woman named Eve. Eve is a poor woman who lives in a distant neighborhood that we never see. Everything in the film happens inside the luxurious hotel.
The movie will rise or fall depending on Cartol's acting skills. She is an excellent actor, and we believe in her as Eve.
Eve works hard, and she is respected by the other workers because of this. Sadly, they accept the hard work and low pay as a given. There's no hint that they would try to collectively stand up to management. What they do is to try to curry favor with management so that they can advance to more expensive rooms where they will get better tips.
Eve's only connection with the outside world is when she makes hurried phone calls to the woman caring for her child. Sometimes she can say a few quick words to him. Otherwise, it's all constant, difficult work.
As you can guess, this isn't a happy film. However, it's an honest film about a diligent worker. I recommend it if you are concerned about workers and their lives.
We saw this movie as a virtual presentation of the Washington, D. C. Labor Film Festival. La camarista has a fairly weak IMDb rating of 7.0. I thought it was much better than that, and rated it 9.
Mexico's class structure
Mexico's submission for Best Foreign Language Film for 2019 focuses on a maid's dismal life in an upscale hotel in Mexico City. "La camarista" ("The Chambermaid" in English) takes place entirely within the hotel - as if to say that the protagonist is a prisoner there - and uses long shots to remind the audience of her unpleasant job. He entire day involves cleaning rooms and assisting guests; examples are an Argentinian tourist who needs her baby watched, and an Orthodox Jewish man who can't operate an elevator on the Sabbath.
All of this serves to remind the viewer of Mexico's class structure, just like "Roma" did. The maid aspires to something more, but is it really within her reach in a society where the social hierarchy is all but institutionalized?
Definitely see it.