Big River Man (Sunday, December 13, 2009) (194)

I think the only way to describe John Maringouin's new film Big River Man is to say it is a 'gonzo' documentary. This is to say that it is hilarious and not traditional, frequently skirting standard practices and including narration that has such a particular point of view it becomes almost a narrative film in it's own right. Though most of the film is normal footage, there are scenes that are clearly scripted and acted out - re-enactments or fantasies of what could have happened.

The film tells the story of Martin Strel, arguably the world's greatest endurance swimmer. Strel is from Slovenia, which, as he tells us early on, is shaped like a chicken. Borut Strel, his son, is his manager and the narrator of the movie. Martin has made a name for himself by swimming some of the world's longest and most important rivers, including the Danube, the Yangtze and the Mississippi. This film is about his attempt to swim the Amazon from its source in the Peruvian Andes to its mouth in coastal Brazil. We see how he trains, how he raises money for the trip by pitching energy drinks and doing motivational speeches, and then once he's on the river, how he goes insane and his body begins to fall apart on the 4300km trip.

Borut is more fluent in English than Martin is, but he speaks in broken idioms and nonsensical approximations. He reminds me of Alex, the narrator in Jon Foer's Everything is Illuminated, who names his dog Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. Borut's narration is amazing and hilarious. At one point he and Martin go to the fast food restaurant, the Hot Horse in Ljubljana, Slovenia and Borut says, 'horse bourgers (sic) are like chicken bourgers - but they're made with horse.'

The Strels are joined on the trip by Matthew Mohlke as navigator on the support boat. Mohlke is a bright-eyed upper-Wisconsin man who basically knows as much about the Amazon as he can read on a map. He has no idea which back channels to take in the river and where there might be rocks or rapids, not to mention piranha and crocodiles ahead of them.


Only a few days into the trip, Strel begins to suffer from pain in his shoulders, any number of molds and mildew on his wetsuit, skin problems and sunburns. But he doesn't know the word 'quit' (he actually might not know it in English). He goes on - not because he is hell-bent on finishing as much as because he simply doesn't know that stopping early is an option (chalk that up to his communist upbringing or the fact that he says he was beaten as a child and can endure tremendous physical pain).

As he travels downriver, much like a character in a Werner Herzog movie (Fitzcarraldo or Aguirre: The Wrath of God), he goes insane. In addition, Mohlke goes insane as well, telling long stories about how Strel is Jesus and the morning mist over the river is the Holy Ghost there to witness the swim. As he goes along, he ultimately refuses to eat (not wanting to expend energy putting a fork or spoon to his mouth) and begins swimming at night and against his doctor's orders. Maringouin wonderfully uses actors at specific moments to act out some of Strels hallucinations or Borut's narration. This adds a wonderful phantasmagoric and, again, comedic, aspect to the whole story.

There is an amazing Heart of Darkness/Apocalypse Now element to this journey. He has a job to do and he cannot not do it. The journey becomes more important and more life-changing than the goal itself. When he finishes (after 66 days), there's a sense that it might not have been worth it as he is a shattered man.

It is unclear whether the voice of Borut is real or not, but it's hilarious. It either is totally real, or it's a constructed, rich persona. Either way it is totally entertaining and amazing to listen to. I guess it's not really fair of me to doubt him just because he sounds too-naive-to-be-true and because it is clear that Maringouin fudges the truth otherwise. All I know is that on Strel's website there is a poll that asks, 'Do you believe that Big River Man film (sic) is premiering at Sundance?' and the choices are: 'Yes, I believe', 'No, I don't believe it!' and 'Maybe, yes'. You can't write stuff that good!

Stars: 3 of 4