This is the story of those who live as if every day was a constant Sunday, those who spend their Mondays in the sun. Engaging and agreeable movie that pays tribute to the unemployment people suffering a lot of misadventures, misfortunes and distresses. Fun, amusing and touching flick about losers trying to live and find a decent job. This is an interesting 'Dramedy': drama with brief touches of comedy, more in less than 113 minutes of length and yet with an air of naturalness and credibility; though essentially predominates drama more than comedy. In a northern coastal city, where a long time ago people turned their backs on the countryside and surrounded themselves with industry, some unemployed, former shipyard workers talk about their things and laugh about everything and nothing in particular. The setting is city of Vigo (Galicia) and surroundings, home of a massive industry and jobs aplenty. However, today with the industry in decline and with a lot of deadly accidents the worthy works have been closed down, there is widespread unemployment, strikes and despair. It tells the story of a group of unemployment mature men tiring for the social and economical crisis. José (Luis Tosar) is married to Ana (Nieve de Medina), who works at a cannery and tires of being the breadwinner. Rico (Joaquín Climent) has his bar and a beautiful 15-year-old daughter (Aida Folch), Reina (Enrique Villén) has become a watchman and a moralizer, Lino fills out job applications, Amador (Celso Bugallo) drinks heavily and talks of his wife's return. One dyes his hair and consigns himself to the hamster wheel of job interview rejections, one stays home and seethes at his working wife, one has ploughed his savings into a bar where his friends loll around drowing their sorrows on the tab. Santa (a great, bear-like acting from Javier Bardem) is the leader , and when not entertaining prostitutes or reading his dreams of Australia in the stain on his ceiling, rails at length and impotently against the unseen forces of their undoing. This film is not based on a real story, it is based on thousands !.
This entertaining film knows very well inter-cross these two genres, drama with brief touches of comedy, although the most comfortable note in the attractive drama. Including a sour denounce about injustices , regarding unemployment, exploitation , and industrial lockout. It is presented as a comedy , but it does have some very moving moments, as it shows the despair , desolation of unemployment and factory lockout. Taking its characters' pulse more perspicuously than it does their situation, the movie joins them, ambling around in grim, funny ever-decreasing circles. And it subtly displays the economic conditions of Aznar/Zapatero's Spain, where entire industries were shut down , taking jobs and local economies along with them. The picture relies heavily on the relationship among the main characters , acting from Bardem anchors this dolorous portrait of laid-off middle-aged Spanish dock-workers in the northern town of Vigo, he's Santa, the group's conscience and troublemaker, occasionally fantasizes about Australia struggling (like their counterparts in the Full Monty, but less bare-facedly) with the emasculating and immobilising effects of unemployment, though some of the sub-plots needed more fleshing out. Yet the laughs are sprinkled throughout nicely , and even though each man has their own personal fears to overcome, they find strength in each other, which makes the experience all the more fruitful .
It's fun, but no less likable, though some infinite sadness follows the film at times, including a touching finale. The film moves in fits and starts most of which would be desirable, with more traps the viewer resists any kind, and some moments of enjoyment and others quite a few disconcerting. This is a pleasant flick that contains humor , entertainment and amusement as well as thought-provoking issues . The film gives a nice character studio of a desperate ex-workers well played by top-drawer actors . Among the choral cast of this story, which approaches the drama of unemployment with a half smile, the resounding interpretations stand out Javier Bardem, Luis Tosar, José Ángel Egido, accompanied by other more secondary ones, giving phenomenal acting , such as : Nieve de Medina, Enrique Villén, Celso Bugallo , Joaquín Climent, Aida Folch, Laura Dominguez, Pepo Oliva and Fernando Tejero.
Los lunes al sol (2002) is Fernando León's third feature film was the most awarded film of the Spanish cinema in 2002, recognized at the San Sebastian Festival with the golden shell and the Fipresci critics' award and great winner of the Goya. With awards for the film, the director and its three main actors. Was selected as the Spanish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 75th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. The motion picture was well directed by Fernando León Aranoa. This Spanish writer and filmmaker Fernando León De Aranoa was born on May 26, 1968 in Madrid, where he usually shoots his films. Fernando began working in cinema in the 90s, shooting short films and writing scripts, and has made some films, usually dramas. He is a good writer and director, known for Familia (1996), Princesas (2005), Barrio (1998), Amador (2010), Sabina (2011) and Un dia perfecto (2015) being winner of the 2016 Goya for best adapted script, Feroz Awards Best Director Fernando León de Aranoa and premiered successfully at the international audiences and his best film Los Lunes al Sol (2002). Rating: 7/10.
This entertaining film knows very well inter-cross these two genres, drama with brief touches of comedy, although the most comfortable note in the attractive drama. Including a sour denounce about injustices , regarding unemployment, exploitation , and industrial lockout. It is presented as a comedy , but it does have some very moving moments, as it shows the despair , desolation of unemployment and factory lockout. Taking its characters' pulse more perspicuously than it does their situation, the movie joins them, ambling around in grim, funny ever-decreasing circles. And it subtly displays the economic conditions of Aznar/Zapatero's Spain, where entire industries were shut down , taking jobs and local economies along with them. The picture relies heavily on the relationship among the main characters , acting from Bardem anchors this dolorous portrait of laid-off middle-aged Spanish dock-workers in the northern town of Vigo, he's Santa, the group's conscience and troublemaker, occasionally fantasizes about Australia struggling (like their counterparts in the Full Monty, but less bare-facedly) with the emasculating and immobilising effects of unemployment, though some of the sub-plots needed more fleshing out. Yet the laughs are sprinkled throughout nicely , and even though each man has their own personal fears to overcome, they find strength in each other, which makes the experience all the more fruitful .
It's fun, but no less likable, though some infinite sadness follows the film at times, including a touching finale. The film moves in fits and starts most of which would be desirable, with more traps the viewer resists any kind, and some moments of enjoyment and others quite a few disconcerting. This is a pleasant flick that contains humor , entertainment and amusement as well as thought-provoking issues . The film gives a nice character studio of a desperate ex-workers well played by top-drawer actors . Among the choral cast of this story, which approaches the drama of unemployment with a half smile, the resounding interpretations stand out Javier Bardem, Luis Tosar, José Ángel Egido, accompanied by other more secondary ones, giving phenomenal acting , such as : Nieve de Medina, Enrique Villén, Celso Bugallo , Joaquín Climent, Aida Folch, Laura Dominguez, Pepo Oliva and Fernando Tejero.
Los lunes al sol (2002) is Fernando León's third feature film was the most awarded film of the Spanish cinema in 2002, recognized at the San Sebastian Festival with the golden shell and the Fipresci critics' award and great winner of the Goya. With awards for the film, the director and its three main actors. Was selected as the Spanish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 75th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. The motion picture was well directed by Fernando León Aranoa. This Spanish writer and filmmaker Fernando León De Aranoa was born on May 26, 1968 in Madrid, where he usually shoots his films. Fernando began working in cinema in the 90s, shooting short films and writing scripts, and has made some films, usually dramas. He is a good writer and director, known for Familia (1996), Princesas (2005), Barrio (1998), Amador (2010), Sabina (2011) and Un dia perfecto (2015) being winner of the 2016 Goya for best adapted script, Feroz Awards Best Director Fernando León de Aranoa and premiered successfully at the international audiences and his best film Los Lunes al Sol (2002). Rating: 7/10.