ODD-JOB MEN, CAMBRIDGE FILM FESTIVAL
Who are the guys who fix your leaky tap, unblock the pipes or install those security cameras? What do we know, or care, about their lives? What dramas are going on under the sink or round the U-bend? The Catalan film ‘Odd-Job Men’ takes a very gentle peek into the work and lives of three tradesmen. Played by amateur actors portraying themselves, we have Valero a 40-something foreman, Pep a wise old timer nearing retirement and a new starter, Moha, a young recent immigrant from Morocco struggling to make a new life in Barcelona. Director Neus Ballus has worked miracles in bringing out simply beautiful performances from the trio. The three really are plumbers who have spent three years improving their improv skills under the guidance of the director.
The Catalan title of this film is ‘Six Ordinary Days’. That tells us a lot more about this movie than the slightly patronising English version. Ballus casts her keen eye on the extraordinary behind the ordinary as the working week begins. Monday begins with the arrival of Moha into a new job. Valero clearly has no time for the novice and continually blames him for all manner of plumbing or electrical mishaps. Old Pep, a frustrated master repair man wants to give the Moroccan a chance. Is there a hint of racism in the air, what lies behind Valero’s animosity? The film deftly avoids any cinematic cliches; instead we have ‘real’ people doing mundane things but revealing the quirkiness of human nature. Each of the six scenes, a working day, provides glimpses of work and home life. Moha is trying to study Catalan while his fellow immigrant housemates want only to watch TV. Valero has a weight problem and is furious with his increasing girth as a family wedding looms. There is much wry humour in this lovely film but above all the characters are fully alive and life meanders rather than follow a scripted narrative. It is very fresh filmmaking. The plumber is coming tomorrow – I shall watch him replace the washers with new eyes.
