|
When
tragedy at sea claims a young seaman's life, the whole Urk
fleet unites in a recovery mission, and Urkers mourn the
loss of another son. While fishermen ply remote seas for
weeks at a time, their families wait anxiously for their
safe return. As one fisherman says, "I never leave
home without saying goodbye, because if you lose your life
at sea, for your mother it wouldn't be nice that she didn't
get to say goodbye." Against the stunning backdrop
of Urk and the tempestuous North Sea, amazingly candid first-person
reflections are woven into a beautiful tapestry of pride,
faith, fatalism--
and
loss.
With rare and remarkable cinematography, the first full-length
documentary about Urk captures a community on the brink
of change. High-tech computers plot ships' courses in the
treacherous North Sea and track bidding in the fish auction
on Urk. At the same time, centuries-old practices persist:
The ships shut down at sea for the Sabbath. Fishermen wear
the elaborate gold earring that identifies them as being
from Urk. Sounds of the Fisher Choir still stir the soul;
but so does the blare of pop music. The struggle to maintain
traditions is fought against increased mechanization, catch
restrictions, foreign competition, and uncontrollable natural
forces. The life of a fisherman is both hard and dangerous,
yet many Urkers cannot imagine doing anything else.
|
