The tired and washed-out Spanish town is a fitting backdrop for these men - a place where life moves on around them at an uninspiring pace.
Mondays in the Sun(Los lunes al sol)
✭ ✭ ✭ Read critic reviews
Spain, France, Italy · 2002
Rated R · 1h 53m
Director Fernando León de Aranoa
Starring Javier Bardem, Luis Tosar, Nieve de Medina, Enrique Villén
Genre Comedy, Drama
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Following the closure of their shipyard in Northern Spain, a group of former shipbuilders deal with alcoholism, marital issues, and legal troubles. They spend their infinite free time drinking at a local bar and looking for work -- to no avail. The film follows the group of men as they struggle with the devastating effects of unemployment.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
The New York Times by Dana Stevens
This slow, episodic film is held together by the galvanic presence of Javier Bardem.
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
The story's rambling, meandering style is just right for the melancholy subject being explored, and all the acting is excellent.
A tough-but-tender movie driven by perfectly modulated performances, an accomplished script and naturalistic dialogue, all at the service of an oft-told message about overcoming circumstances.
Fortunately, no one seems to have clued Bardem in on the game plan, and the fierceness and complexity he brings to his role nearly saves Mondays In The Sun.
Imagine "The Full Monty" without any of the feel-good uplift, and you'd be pretty close to capturing what this bitter -- and often bitterly funny -- film from Spain is all about.
Los Angeles Times by Kenneth Turan
A triumph of quiet realism, a piece of sophisticated, subtle filmmaking that is both thoughtful and thought-provoking.
Austin Chronicle by Kimberley Jones
Bardem injects a shaggy, compassionate humor throughout, aided by a wry and moving ensemble cast and co-writer/director Fernando León de Aranda's eye for the offbeat.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
The performances are relaxed. The open-ended, vignette-like structure of the filmmaking sometimes imitates the movement of weary, life-worn men nursing liquor.
New York Post by Megan Lehmann
There's also enough laconic humor, warming camaraderie and hopeful stabs at dignity to keep the story from assuming the glum gunmetal gray of its setting on the coast of northwestern Spain.
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