Los Cabos 2015 Review: YOU'LL KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH ME (SABRÁS QUÉ HACER CONMIGO), The Mysteries Of Men And Women

Nicolás thinks it's love at first sight.

Emerging from an appointment with his doctor, Nicolás (Pablo Derqui) sees a lovely woman at a hospital. Their eyes meet, and the attraction is instantaneous and mutual. They exchange light banter, and Nicolás leaves his phone number with the woman, named Isabel (Ilse Salas), as well as an invitation to the opening of his photography exhibit that week. When Nicolás sees Isabel at the exhibit, he is thrilled, and the relationship takes off.

But was it love at first sight, truly?

In Katina Medina Mora's You'll Know What to Do with Me (Sabrás qué hacer conmigo), Isabel initially appears to be a befuddling mystery to Nicolás. Why does she swing so quickly between cool distance and hot passion? Why does she keep holding back in their developing relationship? Is there a particular secret that she's reluctant to reveal?

That's only one point of view, of course. Wouldn't it be great to see things from Isabel's perspective?

While You'll Know What to Do with Me follows a path that's been explored before, it's still a relatively fresh trail that has not been deeply trod, namely, the quest to understand an intimate relationship by giving equal weight to both people involved. (Something similar is unfolding right now in the TV series The Affair.) So, rest assured that Isabel's perspective on how she met Nicolás, and how their relationship initially developed, will be revealed in an even-handed manner that sheds light on both members of the couple.

Truly, no one knows the inside of a relationship like the people in that relationship. Once the film has given both Nicolás and Isabel an opportunity to tell their personal stories, as it were, the focus shifts to them as a couple. Katina Medina Mora and Emma Bertran have crafted a script that lays a solid foundation, focusing on common relationship challenges.

Nicolás has a health issue, and Isabel has family complications, and as individuals, those things are paramount in their lives. As a couple, though, how can they deal with their personal shortcomings, as well as the challenges they face that appear to be beyond their control? What impact do those things have on them as a couple? Can they overcome them, or at least mitigate their effect, so they can enjoy a measure of happiness and contentment for years to come?

Avoiding undue sentimentality, You'll Know What to Do with Me nevertheless becomes very affecting, in large measure because Derqui and Salas invest their characters with great warmth and genuine emotion. From a certain angle, the movie is incredibly simple. Step to the side, though and the depth of feeling on display becomes almost overwhelming. It stabbed me all over with the pains of recognition.

The film enjoyed its world premiere at the Los Cabos International Film Festival i Mexico.