Whisky

Just watched it today and it depressed me.  A metaphor
for the state of affairs in Uruguay, "Whisky" did not 
really earn the comedy label attached to it. The film is 
about a sad, old bachelor who pretends to be married to
one of the women working at his sock factory when his
younger brother comes to visit him from Brazil for
their mother's tombstone ceremony.  Jacobo has a very dull
and dreary life, drives a decrepit car,  runs an almost
dead factory and seems to infuse his sullenness into Marta's
life, his secretary/forewoman. For reasons undisclosed to the
public, like most of the key events of the film (and there are
not many), Jacobo decides to pose as a family man in front
of his little brother, Herman, who is a cheerful, easygoing
man. Although Marta goes along with the plan - for free - it's
painfully obvious she has no inner sparkle and lost her will
to enjoy life. But Herman gets through to her little by little and
we discover she is not so drab after all.
The camera angles are oppressive, capturing the monotony
and emptiness of the protagonists lives. The dialogue sparse, as
if their words had broken before being released into the world.
One of the funniest (and I am being indulgent here when I say
funny) scenes is when the two brothers meet at the airport and
give each other a pair of socks as a present. Herman forgets to
take off the price tag and Jacobo asks him later casually how
many dollars would make 9 Brazilian Reais (the price). When they
depart they give each other a different version of the same
t-shirt.
Apparently one of the directors of this film committed suicide last
year after making only 2 movies. Did he watch his own creation
finally?.... Bad joke.