Bad Day To Go Fishing
The former strongest man on earth and his crafty manager tour small South American towns staging wrestling matches. Arriving in Santa Maria, they are met with uncommon enthusiasm by the locals, snowballing into a major challenge to their livelihood and their friendship…
Jacob van Oppen, the former strongest man on earth, and his manager Orsini, a scrawny yet dapper businessman who calls himself "the Prince," make a good living by travelling around small South American towns and organizing wrestling exhibitions in run-down theaters. Jacob van Oppen is an uncontrollable titan of impressive dimensions who can only be appeased by the soft soothing melody of "Lili Marleen." Once this oddball pair disembark at the village of Santa Maria, business really kicks off: the local newspaper is immediately gung-ho on sponsoring the fight, helping hands placard posters announcing the big event and putting an open call for a worthy adversary. Ever so resourceful, Orsini knows how to find the right combatant, but fishing in Santa Maria could lead to a bigger catch than he’d hoped for... Although the cunning editor of the local newspaper is convinced to have sniffed out Orsini’s secret, he very well might be on a false track…
This first feature by Uruguayan director Alvaro Brechner captivates with its originality, cleverness, and humanism. The complex characters are embedded in an uplifting, warm-hearted buddy movie exploring the themes of friendship, loyalty and respect. Laconic humor and beautiful cinematic language make this adaptation of a short story by renowned writer Juan Carlos Onetti a universally compelling filmic experience.
Director Alvaro Brechner :
Jacob van Oppen and Orsini are a Quixotic pair, a breed of survivors eager to live: two eccentric, twilight Europeans passing through a little South American town where time has stood still. Two travelling companions who reveal their values and their fears at a past that has been lost forever, and who depend on each other in a big, lonely world. In a Western atmosphere which alternates moments of drama with comedy, ‘Mal día para pescar’ is a fable about men, about what one believes and what one wants to believe. | Alvaro Brechner |
Jacob van Oppen and Orsini are a Quixotic pair, a breed of survivors eager to live: two eccentric, twilight Europeans passing through a little South American town where time has stood still. Two travelling companions who reveal their values and their fears at a past that has been lost forever, and who depend on each other in a big, lonely world. In a Western atmosphere which alternates moments of drama with comedy, ‘Mal día para pescar’ is a fable about men, about what one believes and what one wants to believe. | Alvaro Brechner |
Jul 25th 2010