La Pena Máxima (Maximum
Penalty)
Colombia, 2000, 82 minutes. Directed by Jorge
Echeverry. This film is on Betacam SP
Once
again, the Colombian national soccer team has a shot at the World Cup
but they must face off against the powerful Argentine team to qualify.
As Colombians celebrate the upcoming match with fervor, Mariano Concha,
a shady public service employee, becomes obsessed with the game, and thus
begins the starting point of a radical and dramatic change in his life.
Confident that his team will win, Mariano begins preparations for the
final match. Slacking off at work and ignoring his family obligations,
Mariano buys the tickets, asks his local priest to pray for the team,
and in an act of exaggerated self-confidence he places a ludicrous bet
all to ensure his attendance at the game and guarantee the team's victory.
He also risks the one thing that he values above all else and gives meaning
to his existence: his wife's love.
Silver Colon for Best Screenplay — Huelva Latin
American Film Festival 2001
Premio Mesquite Award for Best Film in Spanish — San Antonio CineFestival
2002
Nominated for Best Film — Valdivia International Film Festival 2002
OFFICIAL SELECTION:
Mar del Plata Film Festival 2002
Miami Hispanic Film Festival 2002
Trieste Festival of Latin-American Cinema 2002
New York Latino Film Festival 2003