🎬El niño pez

Lala (Inés Efrón), a young woman from an affluent suburban family in Buenos Aires, falls deeply in love with Ailín (Mariela Vitale), a Paraguayan maid working in her family's estate. Desperate to escape their constrained realities, the two young lovers hatch a secret plan to run away together to Ailín's hometown near Lake Ypoá in Paraguay, financing their dream by stealing valuable items from Lala's home.

When Lala's father, a prominent judge, is mysteriously murdered, their plans crumble. Ailín is arrested and held under suspicion for the crime, while Lala flees alone to Paraguay. Unfolding through a fragmented, non-chronological narrative interwoven with Paraguayan folklore—specifically the myth of a magical "fish child" who guides souls in the lake—the film delves into Ailín's traumatic past, class divides, and the length to which Lala will go to free the woman she loves.

💡 Did you know?
Director's Follow-Up to XXY: Writer-director Lucía Puenzo made The Fish Child as her feature follow-up to her internationally lauded LGBTQ+ breakthrough film XXY (2007).

Literary Adaptation: Puenzo adapted the script directly from her own acclaimed 2004 debut novel of the same name.

Málaga Film Festival Honors: Won the Special Jury Award and Best Cinematography for Rodrigo Pulpeiro at the 2009 Málaga Spanish Film Festival.

Guaraní Language & Folklore: Integrates both Spanish and Guaraní, weaving indigenous Paraguayan mythology into a contemporary crime thriller framework.

⭐ Film Evaluation & Ratings 📈
⭐ Global Critical Consensus: 7.0 / 10 (83% on Rotten Tomatoes / 6.3 IMDb) Appreciated in Latin American and international festival circuits for its intense lead performances, delicate atmosphere, and bold blending of crime drama with magical realism.

🎨 Visual & Stylistic Craft: 7.9 / 10

Rodrigo Pulpeiro's atmospheric cinematography uses murky underwater photography and contrasting color palettes between urban Argentina and rural Paraguay to evoke a dreamlike noir mood

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