‘Nochebuena‘ the first Puerto Rican Christmas Rom-Com Pulls at your strings at the San Antonio Film Festival (SAFilm).
Directed by Adam Lopez and written by Glenaliz Querzada, ‘Nochebuena‘ is a culturally rich and heartwarming Christmas rom-com. The film centers on a Puerto Rican family and their friends in Orlando, FL, reuniting for the first time since the passing of Junior’s (Rene Rosado) mother 15 years ago. The story explores themes of family, love, and nostalgia, bringing together a vibrant cast and a festive setting to celebrate the power of reconnecting with loved ones during the holiday season.
Junior’s return and reconnection with his childhood best friend, Jennifer (Tanairi Sade Vazquez) causes feelings of confusion as she is increasingly frustrated within her 4-year relationship with Mike (Christian Escobar), particularly because he can’t join this year’s Christmas Eve festivities as he’s preoccupied with preparing for a karaoke competition with an extremely attractive co-worker. Meanwhile, Jennifer’s long-buried feelings for Junior resurface.
The homecoming is bitter sweet for Junior who faces the ghosts of his past at every turn as everything reminds him of his late mother Maria (Elvia Hill). Escaping to New York in order to climb the corporate ladder, while on the brink of a big promotion, our young romantic returns home toe celebrate Nochebuena with Jennifer’s grandmother Elba (Rose Bianco) and other childhood best friend Melissa (Carmen Morales), who not only are the comic relief, but also play matchmakers for the several near misses that Junior and Jennifer shared in their youth.
After a fleeting romantic moment with Jennifer, Junior slips in the rain and is knocked unconscious. When he awakens, he finds himself at the last Nochebuena he spent with his mother, forced to confront his true feelings for Jennifer. Overwhelmed by nostalgia and unfulfilled love, he is caught off guard when Mike arrives just in time for the festivities, which is none to pleasing for Elba and Melissa.
‘Nochebuena‘ is not just a Puerto Rican or Latino story, it is a first generation American story. Anyone who grew up retaining their parents culture(s) blended with the customs of the New World will be find themselves enjoying every moment of authenticity in not only dialogue but performances of every character during the Christmas party, the one aunt who still lives like she’s 22, the cool uncle that gives you life lessons, the singing, the dancing and everything else that goes along with it.
There’s even a reference to a Latin Freestyle artist that popped me during the screening and when the song eventually came on, I did my best not to sing along to not disturb everyone around me enjoying the film.
Shot in just two weeks, ‘Nochebuena‘ showcases the directly prowess of Lopez and realistic writing style of Querzada, who treat these characters as likeable characters that you would spend time with in real life, instead of like most big budget rom-coms, where you hope neither person finds hapiness. Virtually everyone in ‘Nochebuena‘ is written like someone you have in your own family, from every awe moment to sarcastic response, this movie highlights humanity at its essence.
‘Nochebuena‘ is now available on Prime Video and can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Nochebuena.
For more information about ‘Nochebuena‘ visit: https://typeaent.com/films.
Follow Type A Entertainment and director Adam Lopez on Instagram @type_aentertainment and @adamlopezdreams.
Follow the San Antonio Film Festival on Instagram @SAFilm.
To find out about more screenings at the San Antonio Film Festival visit: https://www.safilm.com/screenings.
Summary
‘Nochebuena‘ is not just a Puerto Rican or Latino story, it is a first generation American story. Anyone who grew up retaining their parents culture(s) blended with the customs of the New World will be find themselves enjoying every moment of authenticity.
