A story of burgeoning labor rights amongst poor fishermen in a small village in Mexico.A story of burgeoning labor rights amongst poor fishermen in a small village in Mexico.A story of burgeoning labor rights amongst poor fishermen in a small village in Mexico.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis film is part of the Criterion Collection, spine #686.
- Quotes
Miro: Compañeros! How long do we have to put up with this slavery and poverty? Who of you in any given year earns more than 40 centavos a day? Who can feed their families with so little? Who has money for medicine? We all know it's unfair, but we know it doesn't have to be this way. A few exploitesr take everything to satisfy their greed. They did not make the sea, the river, or the fish, and they didn't make the canoes, boats or nets either. Nor did they make us. They didn't give our arms the strength with which to work or anything else. Why can't we exchange fish with those who breed cattle, with those who harvest corn, or with those who make fabric? Who prevents this change? Those with money have taken over the boats, nets, ice plants, and transport. They control everything, and they pay us whatever they like.
- ConnectionsReferenced in The Movie Show: Episode dated 21 September 1997 (1997)
Poor fishermen get paid 72 centavos each for ten hours of backbreaking labor. They start to organize for higher wages.
Co-directed by Emilio Gomez and Fred Zinnemann, it's mostly interesting as Zinnemann's second directorial credit. Shot with an air of cinema realite like his earlier work, it's hampered mildly by a mostly non-professional cast. Yet the images managed by cameraman Paul Strand, and the frequently dreamlike quality of the boats gliding on the water, shot from odd angles contrast oddly with the talking sections. With two directors, it's hard to figure out who did what and what their actual intentions were. The reports are that the two directors didn't get along. The contrast between the talking and non-talking segments lend credence to that claim.
Details
- Runtime1 hour 5 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1