The Weekend Sailor

Mexican lawyer and rookie filmmaker Bernardo Arsuaga delivers an inspirational documentary that literally and figuratively takes audiences on a journey around the world. The film centers on the inaugural 1973 White Bread Around the World Yacht Race, considered the most demanding sailing race in history, and one Mexican businessman's bid to defy the world of competitive sailing. Captain Ramon Carlín had barely a year's worth of sailing experience before he decided to journey around the world. After purchasing a Finnish Swan 65, dubbed the Sayulla II, the initial crew included his son, two nephews, and his wife - most in their teen years and all sea novices, hardly prepared to take on boats manned by the British Navy or legendary French sailor Éric Tabarly. Though after gathering a motley young crew of three Americans, a Brit, an Aussie, and a Dutchman - all young sailors ready to prove themselves against the world's best - the mast was raised and the Sayulla II was ready to sail. Arsuaga combines interviews with all surviving crewmembers, including the 92-year-old Captain Carlín, and past and present yachtsmen with newspaper clippings including British pieces that lampooned the idea of Mexican vessels. Lives and ships were lost among the competitors, yet the rag-tag crew of Sayulla II stuck together to achieve one of the greatest upsets in sports history in a story deserving to be told. (Seattle International Film Festival)