Any sense of safety vanishes beneath the rumble of passing trucks in the heart-stopping romantic thriller “On the Road.” The bond between two men — a desperate young outcast and an older, married trucker — begins at a roadside diner, where Veneno (Victor Prieto Simental, remarkably stoic in his acting debut) hitches a ride with Muñeco (Osvaldo Sánchez) across northern Mexico.
Veneno means “poison,” while Muñeco translates to “doll” — a dynamic reflected in the cocaine that draws the two into a tragic love affair.
Their intimate bond is built on mirrored wounds: Muñeco is estranged from his children, and Veneno was abandoned by his father for being feminine. Now 20, Veneno sells sex to survive. At a truck stop, Muñeco asks Veneno if he’s gay. The question sounds disarmingly casual within earshot of other men, but Muñeco’s use of a homophobic slur underscores the culture of hard-edge masculinity that has left Veneno so adrift.
Written and directed by David Pablos (“Dance of the 41”), “On the Road” is atmospherically charged, its haunting flashbacks illuminating Veneno’s growing trust in Muñeco. Each revelation intensifies our emotional investment in these characters; a scene showing the simple act of washing together reveals a tenderness neither man can easily express. Pablos frames the moment as a respite from the cruelty that has shaped Veneno’s life, the camera moving delicately around their naked bodies as sunlight falls across them. For once, Veneno’s body is his own.
When Veneno is driven to a violent act of self-protection, his anguished eyes convey the horror of what remains unseen. What it means to survive is left for us to reckon with on our own.
On the Road Not rated. In Spanish, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 33 minutes. In theaters.
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