The Fish Child (2009)

A desperate love story between two young girls of extremely different social backgrounds who, unable to find a place for their love in the world they live in, are pushed to commit a crime.

Director:

Lucía Puenzo

Writers:

Lucía Puenzo (screenplay), Lucía Puenzo (novel)

Stars:

Inés Efron, Mariela Vitale, Pep Munné

5 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Inés Efron	...	Lala
Mariela Vitale	...	La Guayi (as Mariela Vitale Emme)
Pep Munné	...	El juez Bronté
Diego Velázquez	...	El Vasco
Carlos Bardem	...	Comisario Pulido
Arnaldo André	...	Sócrates Espina
Ailín Salas	...	la Guayi niña
Sandra Guida	...	Felicitas
Julián Doregger	...	Nacho
Paloma Contreras	...	La Chapulina
Darío Valenzuela	...	Guida
Jerónimo Perassolo	...	El niño pez
Marco Vera	...	Animador en la bailanta
Sergio Lapegüe	...	Conductor del noticiero
Pedro Di Salvia

Storyline

Lala, a teenager from the most exclusive suburban neighborhood in Argentina is in love with the Guayi, the 20-year-old Payaguayan maid working at her place. They dream of living together in Paraguay, at the shores of lake Ypoá. Robbing every purse and wallet in the house to fulfill their dream, hiding the money in a shoe box. But when the box is full, it bursts, fueled by desire, jealousy and rage. This is the starting point that spurs the escape through the highway that connects the North of Buenos Aires with Paraguay. While Lala waits to be reunited with her lover in Ypoá by reconstructing her past (the mystery surrounding her pregnancy and the legend of a fish child who guides the drowned to the bottom of the lake), the Guayi is detained in a minors institute in the outskirts of Buenos Aires. She turns out to be hiding a crime from long ago.

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Plot Keywords:

two women in bath tub | lesbian romance | title same as book | adaptation directed by original author | violence | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

Caramelito
Written and Performed by Los Potrankos

User Reviews

Slow buildup leading to contrasts

This movie gives an steady view into the existing relationships of the protagonist's family.The movie keeps the context, yet change frames to show differences of human nature. The outcomes are sometimes drastic, sometime pleasant.The urban lifestyle of Argentina and rural landscape of Paraguay have been used to show the contrasts.

The protagonist plays a simple girl with honest emotions. Her lover on the other hand is a maze. She has a range of emotional and physical connections to different people, who form a part of her existence. The former, with a good fortune and privileged life, the latter with a rustic background and tragic life. She keeps spinning misery around herself under different circumstances,that ultimately affect her lover so much that she is ready to run away to a different country. The movie picks up pace and keep changing locations to keep audience interested.

It would be good to watch this on a Tuesday evening as a mid week thought breaker.

Details

Country:

Argentina France Spain

Language:

Spanish Guarani

Release Date:

9 April 2009 (Argentina)

Also Known As:

The Fish Child

Filming Locations:

Buenos Aires, Federal District, Argentina

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$233,461

Company Credits

Production Co:

Historias Cinematograficas Cinemania, Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales (ICAA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1