A Spanish import that’s been accruing notoriety since its completion in 2022, despite taking two years to fully make its way into the rest of the world. THE COFFEE TABLE (La mesita del comedor) is quintessentially Spanish in its orientation, which as with the films of Hispanic auteurs like Eloy de la Iglesia (CANNIBAL MAN), Augusti Villaronga (IN A GLASS CAGE) and Juanma Bajo Ulloa (THE DEAD MOTHER) means it plays quite rough yet tempers its unpleasantness with a strain of pitch-black comedy.
THE COFFEE TABLE Trailer
The film takes place over the course of one very shitty day that begins with Jesús (David Pareja) and Maria (Estefanía de los Santos), a bickering couple with a newborn infant, attempting to buy furniture for their apartment. An overzealous salesman (Eduardo Antuña) insists on pushing a glass coffee table that even he admits is ugly, but which Jesús purchases to spite Maria, who ridicules him for buying it.
Upon arriving back at the apartment things get even worse for this none-too-happy couple. The thirteen-year-old Ruth (Gala Flores), who lives upstairs from Maria and Jesús, accuses him of inappropriate behavior; Jesús denies it, but Ruth refuses to be dissuaded. Next his attempts at assembling the table are thwarted by a missing screw, resulting in an angry call to the salesman of the opening scene. Worst of all, Maria decides to go out and buy wine for a planned get-together with Jesús’s brother Carlos (Josep Maria Riera) and his eighteen-year-old bride Cristina (Claudia Riera), leaving Jesús alone with the baby and that damned coffee table…
Director Caye Casas demonstrates great ingenuity in his orchestration of a horrific, and horrifically funny, series of events that force Jesús and Maria to own up to their true feelings for each other (it turns out these two aren’t as incompatible as they initially seem), their relatives and their offspring. The suspense is palpable, constructed and maintained in a manner that’s both blunt and refined.
Nowhere is that balance more impeccably pulled off than in Casas’s depiction of bloodletting, which is notably restrained (with multiple killings that all occur offscreen). The most gruesome bits, in fact, take place at a dinner table scene containing no physical violence whatsoever. The impact, however, is equal to that of an especially nasty slasher pic.
The performances in a film like this one, which takes place in a contained setting with a minimal cast, are of paramount importance. Thankfully the actors are up to the challenge, especially David Pareja (as Jesús), who’s called upon to carry much of the film by himself; in so doing he coveys an overpowering sense of fear and regret, leaving the viewer with no choice but to sympathize.
Vital Statistics
THE COFFEE TABLE (La mestia del comedor)
La Charito Films/ Alhena Production/ Apocalipsis Producciones/Cinephobia Releasing
Director: Caye Casas
Producers: Norbert Llaràs, Maria José Serra
Screenplay: Caye Casas, Diego Rodriguez, Cristina Borobia
Cinematography: Alberto Morago
Editing: Caye Casas
Cast: David Pareja, Estefanía de los Santos, Josep Riera, Claudia Riera, Gala Flores, Eduardo Antuña, Cristina Dilla, Itziar Castro