Crab Trap – El vuelco del cangrejo (2009)

Directed by: Oscar Ruiz Navia | 95 minutes | drama | Actors: Rodrigo Velez, Arnobio Salazar Rivas, Jaime Andres Castano, Yisela Alvarez, Karent Hinestroza

On the coast of Colombia, sandwiched between the ocean and the jungle, you will still find villages where time seems to have stood still. Where the poverty-stricken population lives on fish and shellfish that they themselves have taken from the sea in rickety boats, as their ancestors already did. Villages such as La Barre. Young Colombian director Oscar Ruiz Navia pays tribute to the untouched gems of his country with his debut film ‘Crab Trap’. At the same time, he is not afraid to show what threats are lurking. Tradition must increasingly make way for modernity. The ocean is becoming overfished as simple fishermen have faced competition from gigantic ships that steal the fish and shellfish with their huge nets.

Ruiz Navia shows how the ‘invaders’ increasingly leave their mark on the environment of the traditional villagers of La Barre. He does it in a quiet, almost documentary style. The plot is clearly subordinate to the atmosphere here. Two white outsiders each in their own way penetrate the undeveloped coastal village. Daniel (Rodrigo Velez) is a taciturn, mysterious townsman who seems to be on the run from something from his past. He ends up in La Barre in the hope of buying a boat so that he can seek refuge elsewhere.

However, due to the extreme scarcity of fish, all boats are at sea for a longer period of time, so Daniel is forced to stay in the village. The village elder Cerebro (Arnobio Salazar Rivas) offers him a hammock in which to sleep. In addition, he develops a special friendship with the young enterprising girl Lucia (Yisela Alvarez).

And then there’s Paisa (Jaime Andres Castano), a shady figure who stays in La Barre because he has plans for a vacation resort on the beach. To get the residents used to the crowds, he plays loud dance music all day long. The villagers – the embittered Cerebro first – do everything they can to make sure Paisa doesn’t get his way. It’s amazing how Ruiz Navia manages to paint a picture of life in a remote and backward area without exploiting the local population in favor of his film. The director approaches the people of La Barre and their traditions and culture with respect and admiration.

‘Crab Trap’ has become a poetic, still film with sparse dialogue and even less ‘action’. Truly a film for connoisseurs, who are satisfied with the atmospheric images of untouched nature and its equally untouched inhabitants. The dialogue is just enough to keep the story going and contains subtle light-humorous hints that will put a smile on your face.

‘Crab Trap’ is authentic and clearly made with a lot of love and respect. The friction between tradition and progress has often been a theme in films, and in that long list of titles this handsome debut by Oscar Ruiz Navia certainly deserves a mention.