Somos Mari Pepa follows four teenagers in Guadalajara, Mexico as they go about their daily lives flirting with girls, riding skateboards, jamming out and simply enjoying the privileges of youth. These childhood buds form a band crudely labeled as “Mari Pepa” (a colloquial mixture between the word ‘marijuana’ and ‘pussy’), where they spend countless unfulfilled hours practicing for an upcoming battle-of-the-bands. It is a coming-of-age tale that is all-too familiar yet still so original and universally poignant; it is not simply a story where a couple of underachieving kids try to make it big by being awesome-ass punk rock stars but a realistic portrayal of what it means to grow up in a world where dreams often times collide with the dreariness as well as suddenness of reality.

Writer/director Samuel Kishi brilliantly displays his characters in a faithful light, rather than turning anyone into a specific cinematic stereotype: the bully, the friend that nobody really likes, the friend that sells out, or the alcoholic parent figure. As in life, there are rarely strict stereotypes. Somos Mari Pepa is an emotionally raw story whose characters can be identified with by almost anyone. It is essentially Kishi’s ode to his hometown, his childhood, and his experiences; he tells it with surprising grace, reminding us that although growing up can be troublesome and frustrating, it can also produce cherished memories that can be appreciated because of those very hardships.