“10,000 km” puts a modern twist on the age-old conundrum known as the long distance relationship. The Catalonian couple of David Verdaguer’s Sergi and Natalie Tena’s Alex finds itself rent asunder when the latter receives an artistic residency in Los Angeles. Having made their union work for several years, they figure they can make it one more while Sergi remains in Barcelona. Besides, with Skype and other text messaging services, they can remain in touch regularly.
Though the majority of Carlos Marques-Marcet’s film plays out as a two-hander centered around their conversations, yet “10,000 km” is best at capturing the loneliness of their arrangement. While they may carry out talking with nothing mediating their connection but a screen, they still feel alienation effect of approximated presence. They have each other, almost – and that tiny missing piece feels amplified by the number of kilometers separating them.
Nothing about Sergi and Alex’s ups and downs makes for particularly gripping cinema since their obstacles are fairly standard and predictable. Their drama recalls Richard Linklater’s “Before” series with less developed characters and fewer profundities about the nature of love. But the way in which Marques-Marcet decides to let the story of “10,000 km” play out does prove quite absorbing for those who want to look beyond the chain of events.
As the scenes play out in rather drawn-out fashion, ponder a few questions: Why did he choose to show just the screen rather than the character’s full environment? Why depict a conversation from this person’s vantage point as opposed to the other’s? “10,000 km” is a great environment to think about more than what the director says and move on to how he chooses to say it. B / 
Marshall and the Movies 
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