Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s The Beloved (El ser querido) is unlike any family drama I’ve watched because things don’t get fixed. And instead of that being the film’s weakness, it’s a strength. Oftentimes when it comes to films where there is a familial rift, the healing comes in the form of reconnecting, forgiving, and moving forward together. But that doesn’t happen in The Beloved. I would even say that’s not even the point of The Beloved. Instead it’s about two very different people adamant about their own truths and the hurt that comes from it. These two people just happen to be father and daughter.
At the center of The Beloved is Javier Bardem’s Esteban and Victoria Luengo’s Emilia. They haven’t seen each other in 10+ years. And they reunite because Esteban, who is an acclaimed Spanish director, wants his actress daughter Emilia to play the lead in his new film. And they both reel you in, Luengo meeting Bardem toe to toe, from the very first scene. The opening dialogue is a one take 20-minute push and pull between these two characters that exposes his wants, her anger, and the absolute disillusionment of their relationship because he’s not willing to face his past and she’s not going to concede.
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While the cinematography and directing is beautiful, what continuously draws your attention in The Beloved is the acting by Bardem and Luengo. In someone else’s hands I don’t think I would have felt such visceral emotions when he tried to reconnect with her, when she rebuffed his attempts, and the painful and cruel reaction from him in the aftermath. I invested in these characters because you could tell that both actors gave themselves over to The Beloved to the point where they disappeared. And that’s what I want when I watch a film.
I want immersion that makes me believe like I’m watching something private, that isn’t for my eyes, but that rings true. I also want immersion that makes me feel conflicted, angry, and scared. And I want immersion that feels like it was steeped in the bitter emotions of an estrangement from someone that you love but can’t be around because of the pain that they cause you. That’s what I got from The Beloved from the very first moment until the closing sequence where you didn’t get the perfectly tied off ending where they make up, hug it out, and promise to do better.
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The fact that everything wasn’t perfect by the end, also makes The Beloved even more realistic. Because good intentions mean nothing if you can’t admit that you hurt someone. And that’s what we saw with Bardem’s Esteban over and over. And Luengo’s Emilia was an unyielding force that represented every single kid that has been left behind and who carries that abandonment with them without letting it destroy them. That’s why I connected with her and why Luengo’s performance felt like it was etched into the very soul of the film.
But back to that opening sequence of The Beloved.
During the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival, the cast talked about how they kept Bardem and Luengo separate ahead of filming. When Luengo came on set, she didn’t even know where the cameras were. And these two actors bounced off each other for an astoundingly long take that shows how seasoned they are as actors but how much they understood their characters down to their very bones. That’s how immersive it was. But that’s also how committed Sorogoyen, the actors, and every single person on The Beloved was in creating something charged but also of substance instead of spectacle.
The Beloved screened at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival.
