The Story:
In the sleepy Argentine town of Colonia Vela in 1974, principled deputy mayor Ignacio Fuentes (Federico Luppi) faces a dire ultimatum from the ruthless Peronist boss Suprino (Héctor Bidonde) and the mayor: fire his loyal, mild-mannered assistant Mateo (Julio De Grazia), falsely branded a Marxist, or lose his position in the escalating purge of left-leaning elements within the party.
Refusing to bow to baseless tyranny, Fuentes rallies an unlikely band of defenders—including the town drunk, eccentric crop-duster Cervino (Ulises Dumont), and fiery young leftist students—to barricade the town hall against Suprino’s forces, bolstered by corrupt police chief Llanos (Rodolfo Ranni) and the notorious Triple A anticommunist alliance, turning a petty political squabble into chaotic farce with aerial manure drops and absurd skirmishes.
What begins as a riotous comedy of errors spirals into the heart-wrenching tragedy of civil strife, where brothers in ideology clash in brutal urban warfare, torture, and executions, exposing the absurd horrors of fanaticism in this satirical masterpiece directed by Héctor Olivera, blending uproarious humor with the chilling reality of Argentina’s Dirty War.
