¨Drugs…we have to fear them in the same way we
fear the Ocean.¨
Sebastian Cordero, probably the best known Ecuadorian
director, became noticed in 1999 for his feature film ¨Ratas, Ratones, Rateros ¨
which was nominated for best Spanish language foreign film in the Goya Awards
(The Spanish equivalent to the Oscars) among many other awards. Pescador
(Fisherman) is his fourth film and unfortunately the only one I`ve had the honor
of watching so I can’t judge his work based on his other films. What I can say
however, is that this is a great film powered by the performance of Andres
Crespo, who plays the lead character, Blanquito (Whitey), a simple man who
finds an opportunity to get out of the small fishing village he lives in and
fulfill his dreams. Crespo is the heart and soul of this movie. He`s not your
typical hero, he`s more of an anti-hero who has several vices and flaws, but
someone you can really connect with. His performance is just so simplistic and
natural that you forget that he`s acting; it`s the best leading performance
I`ve seen all year. The supporting cast is also great in this film, but it`s
Crespo who maintains us interested in this story. He is a man every Ecuadorian has
seen in the streets before, an ordinary person who comes across an
extraordinary circumstance and is given an opportunity to succeed in life
although at the same time it could mean the end of him as well. He`s introduced
to an entirely different world and in a way the movie plays out as the classic
fish out of the water tale. The circumstances don`t change Blanquito, but he is
introduced to a dangerous world and we can`t help but feel the tension, and
fear for his life. This tension is handled with absolute mastery by Cordero who
builds up the momentum and then loosens the mood with moments of comedic relief
(another element that Crespo helped deliver with perfect comedic timing).
As for the plot goes, Blanquito (Andres Crespo)
who is in his thirties has lived all his life in a small fishing village in
Ecuador with his mother. Like most everyone in El Matal, they live under very
poor circumstances and live off fishing. He works in the beach helping the
fishermen get their boats into the water, while his mother cooks for the people
in the village. He dreams of leaving the town and meeting his biological father
who is an important political figure in the big city of Guayaquil. He finds the
opportunity he`s been waiting for when several boxes of cocaine wash up in the
shore. Along with the rest of the fishermen they collect the cocaine and divide
it amongst them. Soon the police show up warning them that if they find the
drugs they must turn it in, but these men decide to sell the drugs back to the
drug dealers who offer what seems like a lot of money for them in return.
Blanquito who might be simple and naïve at times has his ¨street smarts¨ as
well and realizes he can sell the drugs for ten times as much in Guayaquil. The
only thing he will need is to find buyers and therefore enlists the help of a
Colombian woman he met named Lorna (Maria Cecilia Sanchez). She has been living
with a wealthy man named Elías (Marcelo Aguirre), and they own a very nice
house in El Matal, but have had a big fight recently. Together Blanquito and
Lorna form an unlikely alliance and decide to travel to Guayaquil with a driver
she knows named Fabricio (Carlos Valencia) to find buyers, but dealing with
drugs can be a dangerous thing.
Cordero does an excellent job with the
direction of this film, which he also co-wrote the script for along with writer
Juan Fernando Andrade. The movie is actually based on Andrade`s short story
about a fisherman who finds drugs off the beach shore. This film doesn’t claim
to be based on that true story, but inspired by it. This is a claim most
Hollywood films should make because we know that their stories aren`t based on
real events, because in film everything is manipulated so in a way it is best
to say inspired on real events instead; that way you aren`t lying to your
audience, and you`re given the ability to create your own story. This is really
a great film which owes much of its success to Andres Crespo, but also has an
excellent soundtrack and a very beautiful cinematography (Daniel Andrade) as
well. Sanchez and Valencia also give great performances and are given
interesting characters that are far from being one dimensional. They are
complex, we don`t know everything about them, we fear that at any time any one
of them can betray Blanquito. This is what keeps the tension and the momentum
flowing. Cordero directs Pescador with excellent pacing and keeps us interested
in the story; Crespo delivers one of the best performances of the year so far
with a very memorable character and perfect comedic timing. Most complaints
could come from the ending because it is kind of open ended, but I found it
perfect because the journey doesn’t always end at one specific moment. These
kind of endings have become a trend lately, we`ve seen it in films such as
Martha Marcy May Marlene, where we may have to fill in the gaps at the end.
Pescador is a really great film and I`m looking forward to seeing Cordero`s
previous work along with his upcoming film, Europa. I highly recommend
Pescador!
Esteban - good review! I just watched the movie tonight and I really enjoyed it. Crespo's portrayal of the small town guy with an opportunity to make it out was so deep. I was looking at some reviews after watching the movie and saw one from the BBC that focused on the drug angle completely and totally missed the point of the movie, and another one that sounds like it was written by Britney Spears. Your review gets it - good work man.
ResponderEliminarThanks Jeff! I'm glad you enjoyed this film as well. I agree with you on Crespo, he was great in this film. I'm glad I didn't sound like Britney Spears! Thanks!
Eliminar