TIFF Review – Sergio & Sergei

A cosmonaut stranded at the Mir Space Station develops an unexpected friendship with an amateur radio operator in Cuba.

Sergio (Tomás Cao) is struggling as an university professor to support his mother and sweet young daughter; he is also enjoys being an amateur radio operator who has conversations with fellow enthusiasts around the world in particular an American conspiracy theorist.  The Cuban makes a surprise contact with a cosmonaut named Sergei (Héctor Noas) who is stuck in outer space resulting from collapsed of the Soviet Union in 1991.

There are way too many elements in play with Sergio & Sergei with different storylines, visual effects shots of outer space, various narrators and a floating antagonist (at least near the end).  It creates an amateur quality to the filmmaking and the acting does not help matters as the performances lack the nuances of believability.  What would have been better is to focus on the relationship between Sergio and Sergei which in itself is a fun premise while everything else comes as clutter and filler.

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada; he can be found at LinkedIn.