Some Kind of Sadness

Why is there always something sad in the eyes of Peruvians? At the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, the Peruvian soccer team won the quarterfinal against Austria. But because the playing field was not regulation size and the Peruvian supporters had allegedly misbehaved, officials decided that the match had to be replayed. Peru objected immediately: the field had been used for several other matches, and there was not a single witness to the supporters' supposed misconduct. Their objections were in vain. When the Austrian team appeared on the field for the replay, the Peruvians were already on their way back home. In order to protest racism and unfair treatment, the team decided to withdraw. Director Ramírez begins Alguna Tristeza with the wistful faces of the soccer players on the 1936 team. He uses strong images to capture the sorrow that is somehow interwoven in Peruvian history. Poverty, injustice, loss and marginalisation characterise the culture, and the people seem to have ceased expecting anything else. This associative and poetic film reflects not only on the sorrow, but also on the strength and creativity with which the people manage to remain standing.