The Innocents

Cara de Ángel is fourteen, into punk, and at odds with growing up. Having androgynous features, still exploring their sexuality, and living in a troubled neighborhood of Lima makes life even harder. Constantly subjected to the hostility of Colorete and his gang, Cara de Ángel endures numerous public humiliations. Then there’s his girlfriend Gabriela and punk rock singer Johnny, to whom he feels an inexplicable attraction.

Based on Oswaldo Reynoso’s widely acclaimed 1961 coming-of-age classic »Los Inocentes«, director Germán Tejada gently modernizes the setting and tells the story of the rebellious Cara de Ángel with defiant punk rock attitude and seamlessly interwoven daydream sequences that feel like they came straight from a lost George Romero script. Above all, Tejada’s young cast is a revelation—Diego Cruchaga Ponce de León gives »The Innocents« not only the right face for the role but also a gravitas that makes Cara de Ángel’s story tangible in all its inner and outer struggles.