Whisky. Most movies have something to do with their titles. This movie has nothing to do with alcoholic beverages or distilleries, and it is certainly not Scottish. So why was this Cannes Film Festival award winner call it ‘Whisky“?
Amazingly, this film is all about culture. According to the Air Buturian, “There is a moment at the heart of the film when the three of them have a photo taken. Upon being asked to say “whisky” by the photographer..” In Uraguay, saying whisky is like saying cheese in the US. Both words are intertwined into the fabric of their culture.
It may surprise you to learn how well this movie did on the critics and awards stage. Firstly, there are only three characters in the entire movie and if you were expecting some whisky-loving, fist-swinging scenes – this is not it. The synopsis made it rather clear.
“Jacobo Koller runs a near-derelict sock factory and leads a life of quiet desperation. When his more successful brother Herman announces a surprise visit after many years’ absence, Jacobo is desperate to prove he’s successful at something and asks his near-mute assistant Marta Acuna to pose as his wife.”
How Did Whisky, The 2004 Movie, Fare Before the Critics?
After sweeping the Cannes Film Festival, Whisky went on to win another 19 awards. The critics believed that this movie was one of the best Latin films, loading accolades of all classes including reviews.
One famous writer and chief movie critic at the New York Times, Manohla Dargis, said that “the film is a model of the economy both fiscally and narratively, and the kind of work that taps into the mysteries of consciousness, that recounts political detail and a sense of aesthetic proportion —that is, so often missing from American independent cinema.”
The film received favorite ratings from the top popular media including IMDb 7.1/10, Metacritic 66%, and Rotten Tomatoes 100%.
Production, Actors, and Cultural Importance
The production of Whisky highlights its cultural importance to Latinos as some of the most important countries assisted in the process. Although it is primarily a Uruguayan comedy, Spain, Argentina, and Germany were equally involved.
Directed by Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll, the film centered on three characters played by Andrés Pazos, Mirella Pascual, and Jorge Bolan.
One commentator on IMDb drew critical comparisons between the characters and the literal socio-politico state of Uruguay.
“Whisky” is also a film about Uruguay, represented here in Jacobo’s character. This once prosperous country, a stalwart of democracy, nicknamed “the Switzerland of South America”, is now a country in dire need of technological updating, of restoration of its architectural treasures, and of serious political planning and execution of its economic and social future, and is paying high stakes for decades of unrealistic labor legislation and the aftermath of a traumatic dictatorship in the 1970s and 1980s. To prepare the future, one must take care of one’s past, but also be prepared to bury the past when necessary (like the brothers have to bury their mother). There are no easy solutions. debblyst
How much we agree with him or not does not change the beautiful lessons that can be found in the movie. Whisky is undoubtedly one of those films that touch the fabric of our culture, leaving us with truths and questions we must find answers to.
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