Who writes letters today? The old-school ones on paper, neatly numbered and stacked in envelopes? I’d say an old soul who loves to write more than anything or anyone would do that. In Lucas Santa Ana’s film, which calls itself 300Letters (no space), it’s almost OCD-like when Tom (Gastón Frías) leaves his boyfriend Jero (Cristian Mariani) a pink gift box with 300 letters as he dumps him for good. What’s the occasion? Their first anniversary.
Why did it happen? As Jero’s best friend, Esteban (Bruno Giganti) says, there are always signs. Were there really? Or did Jero — unread and a little naïve — miss them? 300Letters unfolds like a box of revelations that Tom seems to have planned, and Jero never saw coming.
Throughout Santa Ana’s film, we search for right and wrong. What could have gone missing in their relationship? They lived together. They had great chemistry. For external validation, they shared a lively joint social media account. But is a relationship only about finding common ground? Or should it also be about listening to the quiet signals that tell you who truly belongs with you?
As a writer, Tom’s letters are meticulously crafted and arranged like chapters of a story. How would someone like Jero, who sends voice notes instead of text messages, respond to that? Will he ever truly understand the context and content of the letters?
For a queer drama, 300Letters feels startlingly self-aware. It sets out to expose a mindset among certain gay men — one that isn’t uncommon if we view it as a reflection of a community’s behavior. After a point, we stop asking who was right and who was wrong in the story. In a circle where certain patterns have been normalized, it’s often unfair for one partner to expect anything at all from the other.
So, if Tom is simply being himself by leaving impulsively, Jero might never have realized his own needs. In Jero’s mind, he was perhaps on his best behavior all along. As for Tom, who frequently labels his partner superficial, the question remains whether he himself ever communicated enough.
Santa Ana’s screenplay (Gustavo Cabaña, Lucas Santa Ana) shapes both men into complete individuals. The orphaned Jero believes he has found his universe in Tom. The worldly Tom, however, attempts to make sense of his own chaos with his passion to write. Outwardly expressive, the latter remains a mysterious seeker.
300Letters thrives on a non-linear narrative. Told chronologically, this story would never have carried the same weight. The back-and-forth rhythm also mirrors Jero’s confused mind. Pablo Galarza’s camera lingers on him in tender closeups, capturing his moments of despair and discovery.
Santa Ana also uses repetition to great effect. Whether it’s Jero greeting his partners at the gate or Tom reading to an audience, each moment grows richer with meaning as the film progresses. The lighting stays soft, and the original score (Mowat) is subtle yet effective in heightening the emotions. The final revelation offers a mild jolt, though a slightly stronger payoff for the wronged gentleman would have left a deeper mark.
Headlined by an attractive and talented cast, 300Letters stands tall on Cristian Mariani’s sensitive, uninhibited performance. The scene near the garbage bin alone proves his vulnerability on screen. Equally compelling is Gastón Frías as Tom, whose free-spirited energy keeps the film vibrant. The bar confrontation and his meeting with Esteban are standout moments. As Esteban, Bruno Giganti brings an arresting physicality and charm, leaving you wishing for more of him. Jorge Thefs and Jordán Romero provide some level of lightness and quirk, adding texture to this intimate world.
At its soul, 300Letters reminded me of the Greek drama Summer with Carmen, which I watched at the 2023 MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. Lucas Santa Ana’s film is more layered in its form and structure, yet it evokes a similar ache. At its core, the film reflects the fragility of modern relationships and how actions and words are often not what they appear to be. Perched on 300 unread letters and a broken heart, this Argentinian drama quietly asks whether love today is about who your partner really is — or your imagination of what they might turn your life into.
Rating: ★★★★
