A Poet (2025) Movie Review: A Bleak Tragicomedy on The Failings of Artists and Their Proteges

There’s no better perspective on the frustrations and failings of life than that of an artist, as most who choose that career path are bound to remain in obscurity. “A Poet” is a particularly effective study on the destructive, deranged, and often deathly funny exploits of someone dedicated to literature because it details the multi-pronged indignities suffered by all who choose a life in the arts.

Any initial success is bound to fade into the collective consciousness as younger, more energetic proteges take the stage, as the memories of a reviewing public tend to be quite shallow. Simón Mesa Soto’s relentlessly bleak dark comedy may not touch on much thematic ground that hasn’t been charted before in other films about artistic studies, but it does provide 2025 with one of its most memorable characters.

“A Poet” is the story of Oscar Restrepo (Ubeimar Rios), a character so embarrassing and incompetent that he would seemingly be the crystallization of what conservative parents would warn their children from turning into through a career in liberal arts. Oscar may have attained some notoriety through his prize-winning prose when he was more youthful, but any charm he had as a prodigy has faded away now that he’s a slovenly, caustic man-child who still lives with his mother (Margarita Soto) and has so thoroughly embarrassed his teenage daughter that she can’t bear to have him pick or drop her off from school. While continuing to write amidst debilitating writer’s block may seem like a doomed prospect for Oscar, the sad reality is that he’s addicted to poetry because he can’t do anything else.

A broader, angrier version of “A Poet” could have turned Oscar into a figure of such unsavory qualities that he could be taken as the epitome of the artistic world’s most regressive ideals of success. However, Oscar doesn’t feel like a broad caricature of presumptuous, self-important artists who listen to closed loops of praise, as he’s generally aware of what a parasite he’s become within society.

The emotional core of “A Poet” is Oscar realizing the limits of his own potential, and that any knowledge he’s amassed would best be left to himself. He faces a crisis upon taking notice of his student, Yurlady (Rebeca Andrade), a girl from a lower class who has an innate sense of wordsmanship. Oscar may have the tips that could point her in the right direction, but he begins to feel trepidation about whether directing her towards his chosen field might be inherently harmful.

Rios gives a truly memorable performance, as Oscar is somehow a pitiable character who never becomes completely detestable. The mistakes he’s made are so clearly the result of his own decisions that there’s not much second-hand embarrassment whenever Oscar flails in public and erodes any lasting respect he may have earned, but he’s also so generally clueless that it’s hard to fault him for not reading the unspoken advice.

The most crucial bit of satire that Soto finds within the character is that there are moments, however brief, in which Oscar produces something valuable that shows why he’s been so committed to writing in the first place. The issue comes from the fact that accepting these minor achievements would mean having to indulge Oscar in all the excesses that he requires, which is something that few are willing to stomach.

The dynamic between Oscar and Yurlandy is by far the most interesting component of the film, as it offers a fresh perspective on why so many renegade artists feel that there’s a chip on their shoulders. Oscar may be trying to regain the status that he has lost, but Yurlandy is limited by her background and class in what her potential might be.

Frustration is baked into the trajectory of many artists, but Oscar has been forced to wonder whether all of his issues will end up producing any significant works that will grant him any recognition. It’s this process of self-analysis that makes his mentorship of Yurlandy so prickly, as he’s unsure of whether he could ethically point her to a path that would cause her so much anguish.

“A Poet” has a zippy tone that’s evident by its chapterization, as the film is divided cleanly into four segments that examine the different aspects of the artistic process. It’s a neat way to explore different components of an artistic reality, such as its reception by conservative society and the inherent economic struggles, but also leads to a rather unfocused approach that makes the film feel like a series of vignettes. As necessary as it is to ensure that Oscar isn’t misinterpreted as some closeted genius, the nastiness of his situation does become so overwhelming at points that “A Poet” begins to lose sight of its venomous edge for the sake of unadulterated melodrama.

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The compelling relationship that ends up feeling underbaked is between Oscar and his daughter Daniela (Allison Correa), who seems to defy many of the expectations that he has for Yurlandy. While Oscar’s potential acolyte still has a sense of whimsy and optimism about her ability to ascend class barriers, Daniela has a more complete understanding of the rules of society and even more insight about her father’s inability to conquer them.

A sobering conversation between Daniela and Oscar towards the end of the film is by far its best moment, and in no small part because Correa’s gruff, blunt perspective is the perfect antidote to the eccentricity within the performance by Rios. Unfortunately, the scene also feels indicative of the more traditional dramatic trappings that “A Poet” avoided for the sake of spontaneity.

“A Poet” is less a sum of its parts, although it is a bit ironic that its refusal to commit to standard structural qualities resulted in some dramatic inertia. Like Rios himself, the film’s defiance is both bold and detrimental. While 120 minutes is a long time to spend with such a dispiriting character who shows no signs of development, there’s enough hijinks and satirical insights within the edges of “A Poet” to warrant its recommendation as a scathing black comedy.