lyonefein This is a true life story about a very young boy who has been living in Mexico but is about to move to Rome with his Italian mother. For one month or so, he goes to live with his father and grandfather in their fishing village in Mexico's Banco Chinchorro coral reef-the world's largest pristine coral reef.This film is as much about the camera's (and our's) love affair with the environment of the reef as it is about the tender relationship between young Natan and his father (who may never see his son again). We watch as Natan learns about his father's simple life as a fisherman, the joys and pleasures of life on the reef, and the male bonding in this way of life.Most touching, perhaps, are the scenes featuring the wild egret that migrates from Africa, and lands in their hut one morning. Although it is Natan who forms an attachment to the bird, once the bird flies away the audience becomes aware that there is a parallel here between the bird and Natan himself. This viewer cannot but hope that Natan himself will see this film several times over the course of his own life, and let it inform his path and his sense of who he is........and the rest of us as well.

jotix100 A romance between Jorge, a fisherman, and Roberta, an Italian tourist, in the Mexican Caribbean produces a young boy, Natan. The mother knows her place does not belong in the idyllic place where she fell in love with her native man, but she wants to bring her son to Italy where he will be able to grow in a different atmosphere, quite a contrast with the world in which his father lives.Jorge asks for the chance to get his son for a holiday in which the boy will get to see his father in action in the area where he calls home. The primitive surroundings, contrary what one must think, seem natural to Natan, who adapts to his new reality quite well. Father and son bond in ways no one could even predict. Together with Matraca, an older man who plies the sea with Jorge, Natan takes to the new surroundings with unexpected gusto.The film is part documentary, but what transcends is the lyrical quality director Pedro Gonzalez Rubio has given the film. It is basically a film that emphasizes not only the love between a man and his son, but the love to the sea with its mysteries that are found going under its surfaces. It is a quiet reflection about a man and his surroundings where one finds a peace and serenity not found in our so-called civilized society. Who knows if Roberta, the mother is doing the right thing about bringing Natan in her world, rather than in Jorge's. In her mind, she is doing the fight thing, but on the other hand, one thinks Natan ends up the loser.Beautifully photographed by the director and with incidental music by Diego Benlliure, we are taken to a gorgeous and peaceful area in the state of Quintana Roo and the clear waters of the Caribbean in all its splendor.

sl-pierce This short film is a beautiful breath of fresh air amidst the current popular cinema. Pedro González-Rubio reveals the daily life of a young Italian boy, Natan, who has gone to visit his father and grandfather in Mexico, where they live at sea as fishermen. The film is more of a documentary, not following any intense plot, but rather, reflecting on the beauty of nature and the loving relationship between father and son. The cinematography is breathtaking, and I found myself wishing I could live at sea along the Banco Chinchorro as well. The absence of any music or soundtrack throughout the film is both interesting and compelling, because it forces the viewer to focus on the natural sounds of water, wildlife, and simple human interaction and conversation. There is a deep tranquility to this film, a sensation that washes over the audience as well, and one that I particularly enjoyed.

petty-mike I am astounded by the obtuseness of the people here complaining that this beautiful movie lacks plot or narrative. A man and a woman drastically unsuited to each other have a child. The child spends some time with his father before his mother takes him away for good, far out of the father's reach. That's a huge story! Handled here the way it is, simply and sensitively, without false tension or wrong notes, this film delivers no thrills - no sharks, no drug cartels, no Russian submarines - just beautiful images and genuine emotions. The two fishermen are at one with nature, living lightly on the earth, or the sea rather, and they pass on their knowledge and wisdom to the boy with love. David Attenborough makes fine nature documentaries, obviously, but they have nothing to do with this movie.