"We give our most sincere thanks to the town of Villavieja and the Office of the Governor of Huila Department for their collaboration and support in the making of this movie." "Turn off the lights." "Go slow." "We're at the bridge." "Not here, idiot." "On the other bank." "DEAD MEN'S RIVER" "Who the hell is that?" "Rosa María." " Rosa María." " I'm coming." " Hurry, I'm late." ""Late to bed, late to rise."" "See, that's what you get for staying up drinking." "It's too early for lectures." " Here you go." "It's hot." " Thanks." "Victor Manuel..." " I'm afraid." " Of what?" "I don't know, the past." "Forget about that." " It's hard to forget it." " You have to." "Bring me piñuela fruit!" "Get out of here." " Must be hiding something." " Go away!" "Why didn't you bite her, you dumb dog?" "Chocho, get up." " Good morning, father." " Good morning, ma'am." " Whose child is that?" " Mine and yours, father." "Go in, go in to pray." "Hurry up!" "Chocho." "Chocho." "Come here!" "You have to come to mass!" "Being a fool doesn't exempt you!" "Get over here!" "Quiet!" "ONWARD!" "Hey, moron!" "Again with that damn donkey...!" "Oh, damn it!" "I'm coming over there to get you!" "You bastard, you wretch!" "...after so much work!" "All that damn racket!" "You bastard!" "Damn it, when I get my hands on you...!" "That bastard won't stop!" "...with the donkey trampling all over the field!" "Mr. Mayor." "Mr. Mayor." "Mayor." "Sergeant!" "Sergeant!" "Sergeant!" "Go in, go in!" "Go in!" "What about the donkey?" " Where is it?" " In the river." "In the river?" "The donkey is in the river?" "Dead." "The donkey is dead?" "A man." "A man, dead?" "In the river?" "This way." "Good morning, Mr. Mayor." " What is it?" " My brother found a dead body in the river." " A dead body?" " Yes, this morning." "Not my responsibility." "Go find the priest or the sergeant or whoever." "Come on." ""Better the devil you know than the devil you don't."" "That's very wise." "The mayor we had was evil, like all mayors." "But we already knew all his bad habits, and we'd learned to put up with him." "And now what happens?" "We get a new mayor and he's even worse!" "All because you insisted on change." "Remember, I was against it." "So now you have to bear the consequences of the new mayor." "Do you know what's been done... by that chubby little character that the governor's office sent us in the eight days that he's spent with us?" "Nothing!" "Nothing but outrages." "He's been having his way, and I won't tolerate it anymore." "Do you know what he thought to do?" "Repair the roads?" "No." "The new mayor hasn't thought about fixing the roads, which are full of potholes..." "Look, take that kid out of here or keep her quiet, please." "Are you done?" "Repair the road to the river, which nourishes the people here with water and which is also in terrible condition?" "Not that either." "The new mayor hasn't thought about fixing the road to the river." "The new mayor has only thought about stirring up the people with that pageant, Queen of the Dragon Fruit." "If he'd used another fruit, maybe I'd even have helped him." "But he used the dragon fruit, which is the fruit that represents this town, and this region." "And that I refuse to tolerate." "I'm against any disrespecting of the dragon fruit, just as I am against further commotion in town... from marriageable young women... out in the street, wearing ribbons and posing for photos... dancing non-stop... and so on announcing their candidacy as if they were politicians." "And speaking of politicians..." "I heard that we'll soon be visited by..." "Sergeant." "My brother just found a dead body in the river." "I said there's a body in the river." "Sergeant, where are your men?" "At the commission, sir." "They won't be back until tonight." "Bring the secretary and men to lift a dead body." " We'll meet on the road." " As you wish, sir." "What about the donkey?" "Come with me." " Where?" " To the river." "I've got a little job for you." "Hurry up." " Who is it?" " I don't know him, Mr. Mayor." "Is he from around here?" "I don't think so." "Clearly, when he was thrown in the river, he was already dead and his hands were tied." " It'd be best to inform the capital." " I agree, Mr. Mayor." "What is it?" "Send this message for me." " Mr. Mayor?" " At your service." " Where is the body?" " At town hall." " And you are...?" " The investigator." " Sgt. Martinez, sir." " Thank you." " What about the dead man?" " Routine, sir, routine." "It's not routine at all!" "We found him yesterday in the river." "Let's see, let's see." "Hello." "In view of the terrible event that occurred earlier and has disturbed the calm..." " It's at the mayor's office." "...a special investigator has just arrived from the capital, with the aim of investigating this terrible event." "For that reason, the mayor of the town asks the whole town for their selfless assistance ...in trying to discover the culprits." "So I invite everyone to gather immediately in front of town hall." "Let's see." "Hello, hello." "The dead body found in the river needs to be identified." "So... it would be greatly appreciated if people came to town hall to try to recognize him." "In other words, everyone come." "Hello, let's see." "Hello." "Stay there until I call you." "Come." " Why do they want us here?" " A man died." "No..." " It's because a special investigator came." " What for?" "To crown the Queen of the Dragon Fruit." "Here's the first suspect." "Thank you." " That'll be all, sergeant." " Thank you, sir." "Eliezer Martinez... with a 'z'." "Good." "What's your name?" "Chocho." "Chocho is his name." "That's not a name." "Tell me your full name." "Chocho!" "Bring in the next one." " Secretary." " Yes, Mr. Mayor." "Who's that man who rides on horseback at dawn?" "Surely it's Victor Manuel, sir." "He's gets up early because he works two leagues from here." "Doing what?" "He's a horse trainer at Future Ranch." "Remind me to fine him." " It'd be better to be nice to him, Mr. Mayor." " Why's that?" "He says he was a guerrilla in Los Llanos." "What's your name?" "Jaime Banegas, sir." "Profession?" "Campesino, sir." "What'd you do yesterday?" " The same as the day before." " Which was?" "Nothing, sir." "How many times have you been to jail?" "It's always full, so..." "Do you know this man?" " Yes, I know him." " Where did you meet him?" " Yesterday, when we pulled him from the river." " You idiot!" "And the rest of you?" "Here comes the fool's sister." "Sergeant, can we go?" " Yeah, go." " Wait!" "First, bury the body in the cemetery." "Oh, but...!" "No buts!" "Sergeant, take care of it." "Let's go." "Come on, move it." "Good morning." "Can I bring my brother home?" "I need his help." "For two siblings, you sure are different." " So nobody knows the dead man?" " Nobody." "He floated here." "This is a peaceful town." "They sent me for nothing." "I should take the afternoon train back." "You might as well stay for the festival." " A festival, when?" " In two days, and it's great!" " Long live Dora the First!" " Yeah!" "Come on!" " Queen of what?" " Of the Dragon Fruit." "There are five contestants now." "Not there!" "Hey!" "You can't bury anyone there!" " But the mayor ordered us to." " It doesn't matter." "He's the boss out there, but in here, what I say goes!" "But he's dead, and he stinks!" "Yes." "And I know how he died." "He drowned without sacraments." "Those men don't go to heaven, and they don't get buried on sacred ground." "But we have to bury him." "Not here." "Then outside, next to the one who died in sin, the suicide victim." "Okay." "Fill that hole and come here." "So that man came from Los Llanos?" "Yes, sir." "Twelve months ago, around when Rosa María arrived." "That's why they get along so well." "People say they're a couple." " Oh, she's the owner of the bar?" " Of The Tatacoa, sir." "Ah..." " Two aguardientes, please, Rosa María." " Okay." "What an odd name, The Tatacoa." "It's a snake that swims in shallow pools, sir." ""Where there's tatacoas, there's agua, even in the hottest summer."" "So why call it The Tatacoa?" "Because here there's always agua-rdiente, sir." "I got you a double for your first time here." "It won't be my last!" "Good evening." "This box was left for you at the office, sir." "Thanks, sergeant." "Everyone have a seat." "Rosita, a bottle of aguardiente and two shot-glasses." "It's the 7:30 train." " When does it come tomorrow?" " At 9:00, if it comes." "You aren't insisting on leaving, are you?" "But is the investigation over?" " Yes, everything's done." " Not everything!" "The festival starts in two days." "Well, there's a problem:" "my travel expenses." "Don't worry about that." "I'll sign a certificate to verify any length of stay." "So you're staying?" "It's getting dark." "I have to go organize the rounds." "Stop worrying, sergeant." "Nothing happens here." "You should have another aguardiente." "Hello." "Good morning." " What's wrong?" " Nothing." "Don't give me that." "Something's wrong!" "You didn't come yesterday or bring me piñuelas." "I had to sleep at the ranch." "And you slept alone?" " We can go down now." " How many are in the house?" "A couple with two children." "A girl and an idiot." "She's real pretty." "Must be about 17." "I want her alive." "And the others?" "But why are we attacking them?" "You afraid?" "You know I don't fear anyone." "I fight those who fight, but I don't kill defenseless people." "You can't back out now." "You know what happens to cowards." "Now that you've poured them, bring them over here." "Thank you." " She's pretty." " Yeah." "Let's play something fun." "Look." " Want to liven this place up?" " Of course, let's do it!" "Want to dance?" "Shall we?" "Lazambo is the mountain I see to the south" "They told me as a boy that it was the figure of a giant old man" "Lazambo, your distant blue silhouette on the border of the cool waters of the Magdalena River" "Lazambo, on afternoons when the sun shines golden, your name and beautiful figure symbolize Hispanic America" "Lazambo, I carry you in my heart" "I give you my verses, my voice, and my dreams in this song" "Lazambo!" "Lazambo!" "Lazambo!" "I give you my song!" "Lazambo!" "Lazambo!" "Lazambo!" "I carry you in my heart!" "What a beautiful sea!" "Take me with you!" "Let's have a ball!" "Wait!" "Take this!" "The man on the white horse." " Calm down, it's fine." " Damned river!" "Why did it have to wash up on that shore?" "Just because one ended up here doesn't mean they all will." "The current definitely carried this one to the bottom." " It's just a dog." " Okay, let's go." "Sergeant!" "Sergeant!" "What do you want?" "A dead body, the river." "Yeah, yeah, I know." "Let me sleep." "Another." "Another?" "Okay, let's go." "For the other town's mayor." "Sergeant!" " What the hell are you doing here?" " Almost nothing, sergeant." "Earning myself another bottle of aguardiente." ""The early bird gets the worm."" "A man's gotta live, sergeant." "Hey!" "They shut us in here!" "We're screwed." "Those bastards locked us in." " What do we do now?" " Sergeant!" "Sir." "Go in." "Sir, we..." "Silence!" "I should put you in jail for last night's brawl." "But sir, it wasn't our fault." " Why did you come here?" " For the festival, to sell things." " A 20-peso fine for each of you." " But sir...!" "Quiet!" "And don't make any more trouble in town." "But..." "Pay it at the treasurer's office." "Wait." " So what, you're leaving?" " Yes, we're leaving." "We're leaving?" "They beat us, they fine us, they put us in jail, and then they want us to stay!" "Let's see, let's see, hello." "This is to remind all of the arrival, tomorrow at the station, of Dr. Ignacio María Díaz Pérez, honorable candidate for the House, who will patriotically represent us in the republic's capital, serving all the interests of the local people." "Please receive him with civility and good cheer." "Signed, The Mayor." "Patriotism, good cheer, and civility are this town's mottoes." "Remember that." "I'm running late, Mr. Mayor." "Got you!" "What's wrong?" "Forgive me, José." "Move it, dear!" "The bull's gonna kill us!" " At your service, sir." " Is the investigation over yet?" "A public order commission against Future Ranch!" "Grab your guns!" "We're going to a public order commission." "Hey!" "Don't you know that work hours are 8:00-12:00 and 2:00-6:00?" "Here they pay us to work, you got that?" "I brought three." "Put them over there." "ONWARD!" " What do you want?" " To speak to the mayor." "You can't now, he's very busy." "Come back tomorrow." "Hey!" " Why did they put me in here?" " You know why." "Riding a horse at dawn disturbs the peace." "You won't get out unless you pay a 50-peso fine." "Good afternoon, Chocho." "Want help?" "Look, look!" "The mayor!" "Little bastards!" " Good afternoon, investigator." " Good afternoon, sir." "I have your certificate." "It's blank so you can fill it in for however many days you want." "Thanks a lot, sir." " Good afternoon, sir." " Good afternoon, sergeant." " Want a drink?" " Yes, thanks." "A bottle of aguardiente on the sergeant." "Want a drink, Mr. Mayor?" "No, I'm leaving." "I've got a full day tomorrow." "The festival, the coronation dance, the campaign visit..." "The train must've broken down." "Come on." " Long live the Dragon Fruit!" " Yeah!" "Fellow countrymen..." "My grandfather was a campesino, barefoot and illiterate." "My father... was a campesino who learned to read and write and wore shoes on Sundays and on market days." "I am a campesino who went through university, full of pride that my hands, as they went over the pages of the books I studied, allowed me to show what I am:" "a campesino, down to the scars from the calluses that the machete gave me." "Long live Nohora the First!" "So we are from the same family!" "From the same fertile soil!" "I am like you." "Long live Virginia the First!" "That's why I've come to you as what I am... a campesino offering liberation for his people... in the same language that his people speak... one who will keep his promises because if he didn't," "it would be as if he were making a mockery of himself." "Long live Oliva the First!" "Of course I don't have any personal ambitions." "This thousand-year-old forest... sown for over a century by the hands of our campesino forefathers... and all of you... all of you are witnesses to the fact that I have no electoral aspirations." "But if, to obtain the justice that we need and ask for, it's necessary that I remain your spokesman... and return to Congress I will offer myself with pleasure, and will go to Congress as many times as necessary." "We must win these elections to secure the democratic contest for a supermajority." "And since elections can only be won with votes, it's essential that everyone obtain identification, and we all must help in this effort." "As was once said by that great philosopher of antiquity, whose name I don't wish to remember," ""Love thy neighbor!"" "I order you to!" "Greet thy neighbor!" "Long live Dora the First!" "Party members!" "We are..." "Party members!" "We are..." "Party members!" "We are..." "We are the..." " Long live the Queen of the Dragon Fruit!" " Yeah!" " Down with petty politicians!" " Yeah!" "Wait, wait!" "Wait!" "Wait!" " How are you?" " Hello." "You nearly wrecked the bar, huh?" " Pay the fine yet?" " The fine?" "Yeah." "How could I miss the festival?" " Piñuelas." " Thanks." " Going to the dance?" " Yeah." " The rooster sacrifice too?" " Yeah." " Long live the dragon fruit!" " Yeah!" "Another bottle, sergeant." "There are no more." "I'm going to ask the investigator instead." "Go ask him." "You can't scare me with that story anymore." "How much will you pay me for information about another body?" " Another one?" " Yes." "Spoil the festival with another body and I'll have him jail you." "Just say the word." "Without your love, my life is sad" "It's impossible to live without you" "You know I love you so much" "If you leave me, I'll die" "I'd rather you destroyed me" "We're all waiting for him." "The people want to meet him personally." "He's very tired and couldn't come." "Political life is draining." "Not to mention the problem with the speech this morning." " No, no, it was great." " Well, but..." "No, of course." "I meant the content of it." " Oh, the content." "Did you like it?" " Yes, yes, it was very good." " He's got this town's vote." " Think so?" " Mhm." "Shall we dance?" "Sorry, excuse me." "There's an iris that you planted in my garden" "It's withered from so much suffering" "What position do you aspire to?" "Well, Secretary of Labor." "Modesty aside, I'm more than worthy." " Okay, it's yours, it's yours." " Thank you." "Now you don't remember that withered iris" "How are you, my dear Mr. Reyes?" " How do you like the festival?" " It's great, just great." " Hot out, isn't it?" " Yesterday was much worse." "How was the pageant?" "Have you picked a favorite yet?" "Uh, the investigation..." "They told me you did a fantastic job." "A very complicated case, no solid leads." "I'm sure it was murder." "A killer in a happy, peaceful town like this?" "I'd lean towards suicide." "Not a bad theory, but his hands were bound." "Remember, the river brought him, so it doesn't involve the town." "But it's a crime." "It can't go unpunished." "My dear Mr. Reyes, plenty of crimes go unpunished." "I think you're the favorite." "You can trust in my electoral experience." "Did you know that I'm on the jury?" "Do you think we'll win the elections?" "I'm certain of it, sir." "I know this place very well." "For about 10 years, I've been the town secretary." "That's a long time." "That experience qualifies you for higher posts." " You think so, sir?" " Certainly." "Thank you so much, sir." "That's very kind." " Are you happy?" " Very." "I've been thinking." " It's all so different now." " I won't let you be sad again." " I'm sure of that." " What I mean is..." "I have some money saved, plans for the future." "So we'll see to everything?" "Yes." "I'll go get a guitar."