Bombón – El Perro

Carlos Sorín provides an authentic and attractive view of the desolate landscape of Patagonia and the contrast between rich and poor there, a terrain he had covered in his previous film Historias mínimas. Juan Villegas is convincing as the lonely man who suddenly finds himself lumbered with a gigantic purebred dog (played by the photogenic Gregorio). 52-year-old Juan has just been fired from the garage where he has worked for 20 years. As thanks for services rendered, the good-natured Juan one day receives from a friend a dogo argentino, a large white purebred dog by the name of Bombón. Via this dog, Juan becomes acquainted with Walter, a rather irritable man who works at dog shows as a veterinary examiner. He persuades Juan to take part in competitions with the dog. After several training sessions, Bombón wins one of the dog shows and Juan and Walter immediately think they have it made. They hope to earn a lot of money by breeding the dog, but in that department, Bombón’s achievements are not up to par. Bombón – El perro is a comical and light-hearted portrait of dog shows and their participants, but above all a story made with great love about a man who starts enjoying life thanks to his four-footed friend. At the film festival in San Sebastián, the film won the Fipresci Prize, the prize of the international film press.