Mosh (Juan Antonio Bisono, 2019): Dominican Republic

Reviewed by Maria Zermeno. Viewed at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020.

The 2019 Dominican drama film Mosh, directed by Juan Antonio Bisono, is about a young 16 year old girl named Mosh, played by Maria Rebecca Dalmasi, who deals with the pains of her terminally ill mother and the troubles of her drug dealing cousin Geronimo, played by Omar Augusto Luis. Despite having to deal with life’s harsh circumstances and growing up in the ghetto, she finds comfort and happiness through dance. This film is not only about Mosh’s life and the struggles she faces, the film goes much deeper than meets the eye. The film also focuses on the meaning of life and the meaning of life after death if there even is one. Throughout the film we see a woman dressed in all white and dark lipstick hidden from the sight of the main characters. At first, you are made to think as though this person has no importance to Mosh and the film in general, but towards the end we come to realize the significance of this mysterious character. Director Bisono created the film with such beautiful color schemes with not only natural bright lighting but also purple and pink neon lights that radiate perfectly during the scenes shot at night. This film is such a beautiful film not only for its colorful scenery but the music and storyline overall. This film is totally relatable to viewers because it deals a lot with the struggles that some may face in real life. One very real and emotional moment of the film was when Mosh’s mother found out that the cancer had spread throughout her entire body. Another emotional scene was when Mosh asked her mother if she was going to die. You can see the pain behind both Mosh and her mother’s eyes in this scene which can make just about anyone sympathize with their pain. Mosh has to come to terms with the fact that she may have to live without her mother but she finds herself worrying more about being left to be raised by her drug dealing cousin Geronimo. In attempts to stop Geronimo from falling deeper into the lifestyle of criminals, Mosh flushes his drugs down the drain and throws his gun off of the roof of their home. Hoping this will make Geronimo realize the dangers of his choices, only makes matters worse because both Geronimo and Mosh are put at risk of death by the hands of the drug lord El Iguana, played by Damian Alcazar. El Iguana isn’t as scary as he seems when he’s introduced to the viewers because he gives a beautiful monologue about life and death and what they both mean to him. There are so many hidden messages throughout the film that you’d have to see in order to understand why this film is important. Mosh’s big escape from her reality is found in dancing which was so wonderfully captured in dramatic scenes of the film. The film has scenes that may be dramatic or suspenseful but when Mosh is dancing, it’s as if the world stops and it’s just her and nobody else. Mosh is a beautiful film to see and has an important meaning behind the story.