(Alonso Ruizpalacios, Mexico/US 2024, 139 min., DCP, Spanish and English with English subtitles)
It’s the lunch rush at The Grill in Manhattan, and money has gone missing from the till. All the undocumented cooks are being investigated, and Pedro (Raúl Briones) is the prime suspect. He’s a dreamer and a troublemaker, and in love with Julia (Rooney Mara), an American waitress who cannot commit to a relationship. Rashid, The Grill's owner, has promised to help Pedro with his papers so he can “become legal”. But a shocking revelation about Julia compels Pedro to spiral into an act that will stop the production line of one of the city’s busiest kitchens once and for all. La Cocina is a tragic and comic tribute to the invisible people who keep our restaurants running and our stomachs full, whilst chasing a perhaps unreachable version of the American dream.