North American Premiere
Still reeling from a fresh breakup, thirtysomething David (Iair Said), a chubby gay Jewish man living in a state of arrested development, returns to his native Buenos Aires for his uncle’s funeral. There he has to confront not only his Jewish heritage, but also the impending death of his comatose father, kept alive by a ventilator that his mother Dora (Rita Cortese) has decided to unplug. Faced with these harsh realities, David copes in the only way he seems to know: by getting into agonizing, cringe-worthy situations prompted by his desire for sex and attention.
Directed by Said himself, Most People Die on Sundays reinvigorates a familiar cringe comedy template with a detailed look at the little-seen Argentinean Jewish milieu in which the film unfolds. Featuring memorable, layered performances from both Said and Cortese, this is a darkly comic exploration of the lengths people will go to escape their origins, and the moments of grace they find along the way.
Community Partner
Iair Said, Rita Cortese, Antonia Zegers, Juliana Gattas
Argentina/Italy/Spain
2024
In Spanish with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits & Director
Producer
Nicolás Avruj, Diego Lerman
Screenwriter
Iair Said
Cinematography
Giovanni Cimarosti
Editor
Flor Efrón
Production Design
Coca Oderigo, Cristina Nigro
Original Music
Ascari
Iair Said
Born in Argentina, in 1988, Iair is an actor, director, and casting director. His directorial debut 9 Vaccines (2012) won the Black Pearl Award for Best Narrative Short Film at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival and the Best Short Film Award at the BAFICI Film Festival. His latest short film Present Imperfect (2015) was selected in the official competition for the 68th Cannes Film Festival. Most People Die on Sundays is Iair’s first feature film.
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
The History of Concrete
After attending a workshop on pitching saccharine Hallmark movies, John Wilson tries to apply all the same best practices to his documentary about concrete. Frequently absurd and endlessly entertaining detours, asides, and digressions ensue.
La Bola Negra
A big, old-school historical melodrama gets a thrillingly modern, queer makeover from Spanish duo Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, who artfully juggle three gay protagonists across stories set in 1932, 1937, and 2017. Winner: Best Director, Cannes. Screening on 35mm.
NAZA
NAZA is a codeword euphemistically used by Israeli intelligence to indicate the number of civilians it expects will be killed in an airstrike. This chilling documentary exposes the policy and process of state-sanctioned mass killings.
The Mad Dog of Europe
The story of an unmade screenplay from the writer of Citizen Kane. In 1932, Herman Mankiewicz wrote a film that foretold the persecution of the Jews and the war in Europe. But Hollywood wouldn't take the risk and The Mad Dog of Europe was never made.
The Mortal Storm
In this explicitly anti-Nazi melodrama directed by Frank Borzage (Three Comrades) a year before the US entered the war, Margaret Sullavan and James Stewart fall in love as their friends and family fall prey to the rise of Hitler's Nazi party in Germany.
Three Comrades
Scripted by F Scott Fitzgerald, Three Comrades (1938) was the first US studio film to chronicle the rise of European fascism in the 30s. Three German veterans open up a repair shop and try to regain a normal life, but political extremists have other ideas.
