Film of the week: Vuelve a la Vida/Back to Life

Vuelve a la Vida/Back to Life (Mexico, 2010)
Starring Robyn Sidney and John Grillo
Directed by Carlos Hagerman
Have you ever had a film just fill you with so much hope and goodness that as soon as you leave the theater you want to stop everyone on the street and say, “You HAVE TO see this movie!”? That’s exactly what I felt immediately after the screening of Carlos Hagerman’s “Vuelve a la Vida,” (the name of a ceviche so good it cures hangovers).  It is a  documentary about a model, a scuba diver, a shark and the legendary shark hunt that epitomized what it is to live in and be from Alcapulco, Mexico.
This is the story of Perro Largo (Long Dog), an Alcapulco legend, known for his aquatic prowess, machismo and charm; as told by those who knew and loved him and were a part of a great shark hunt in November of 1975.
Hagerman came across the story via Perro Largo’s step-son John Grillo, and both he and Grillo were attempting to make a huge Hollywood production based on the legend. But a funny thing happened as they gathered first-person accounts from El Perro’s f