Bombón: El Perro
Dir: Carlos Sorín
2004
*****
Carlos Sorín's neo-realist comedy drama Bombon: El Perro (Bombon: The Dog) is a joy from start to finish. It's not the dog that steals the show though as you might expect, it's our down on his luck hero Coco (played by Juan Villegas), who is instantly lovable. After a spell of bad luck, Coco is unexpectedly gifted a Dog by a woman he helps by the side of the road after her car breaks down. He decides to keep the job and when his daughter with whom he lives with gives him the ultimatum 'It's me or the Dog" he chooses the dog and a memorable road-trip begins. Carlos Sorín's neo-realist approach works perfectly, as many of the characters are real people rather than actors which makes the magic of the story feel just that little more believable. The one man and his dog story has been done to death, the big difference here is that instead of the dog leading to trouble, Coco's luck actually changes for the better, giving the film a lovely feel of good karma. A beautifully directed feel good film.