This movie tells the stories of several men a couple of years after they were let go from a Spanish shipyard when it closed. The serious tone of the movie is set in the opening documentary-style scenes where shipyard workers are battling the police. So, this movie is clearly not offered simply as an entertainment. Given that, I asked what we are supposed to get out of having sat through this.
One point made is how difficult it is for skilled, middle-aged men to lose their jobs. One man takes a job as a security guard, another opens a bar (where a lot of the movie takes place), another hopelessly pursues getting a job in an environment where the jobs are going to younger men with more salable skills, another suffers with his sense of loss of manhood with his wife working in a tuna canning factory, another loses his wife and becomes an alcoholic. Then there is Santa (Javier Bardem) who has a complex of reactions: anomie, defiance, pride, cynicism, detached amusement, philosophical musings, and prankishness. He is a strong presence among his cadre of friends who meet regularly at the bar. The job situation has put all of the men under stress and their interactions are not always friendly, but they have bonded in the face of adversity.
I have seen Bardem in three movies (additionally "Before Night Falls" and "The Sea Inside") and in each he has created a unique character. He is one of those superior actors who can make you believe he is his character rather than an actor playing a role. All the actors turn in fine performances here. The musical score sets a tone of sweet sadness. There are touches of humor, also touched with melancholy, like when the friends are watching a soccer game from having been let in to free seats high above the arena, but have their view of the end zone obstructed by a canopy.
I was left with wanting to know more about the welfare system in Spain and the extent of unemployment there. The jobless men had fallen on hard times and it was not always clear to me how they were making it. Santa was a skilled welder with a forceful personality - surely there would be a job for such a person. Was the bond with his friends preventing him from being more proactive in his job search?
It is hard to find fault with this production, but the downbeat mood of the characters rubbed off and remains my lasting impression. The plight of the workers is established early on and then neither the people nor the situation change; that does not make for engaging drama.
One point made is how difficult it is for skilled, middle-aged men to lose their jobs. One man takes a job as a security guard, another opens a bar (where a lot of the movie takes place), another hopelessly pursues getting a job in an environment where the jobs are going to younger men with more salable skills, another suffers with his sense of loss of manhood with his wife working in a tuna canning factory, another loses his wife and becomes an alcoholic. Then there is Santa (Javier Bardem) who has a complex of reactions: anomie, defiance, pride, cynicism, detached amusement, philosophical musings, and prankishness. He is a strong presence among his cadre of friends who meet regularly at the bar. The job situation has put all of the men under stress and their interactions are not always friendly, but they have bonded in the face of adversity.
I have seen Bardem in three movies (additionally "Before Night Falls" and "The Sea Inside") and in each he has created a unique character. He is one of those superior actors who can make you believe he is his character rather than an actor playing a role. All the actors turn in fine performances here. The musical score sets a tone of sweet sadness. There are touches of humor, also touched with melancholy, like when the friends are watching a soccer game from having been let in to free seats high above the arena, but have their view of the end zone obstructed by a canopy.
I was left with wanting to know more about the welfare system in Spain and the extent of unemployment there. The jobless men had fallen on hard times and it was not always clear to me how they were making it. Santa was a skilled welder with a forceful personality - surely there would be a job for such a person. Was the bond with his friends preventing him from being more proactive in his job search?
It is hard to find fault with this production, but the downbeat mood of the characters rubbed off and remains my lasting impression. The plight of the workers is established early on and then neither the people nor the situation change; that does not make for engaging drama.