El Ganzo (2015) - full transcript

Identity and self-discovery evolve in an epic journey through the majesty of a Mexico rarely seen. EL GANZO chronicles a brief and intense connection between two lonely travelers: a struggling artist on the verge of a creative breakthrough and a mysterious woman with a hidden and unknown past.

[upbeat music]

[eery music]

[guitar music]

- Come si y'amas?

- [Antonio] Antonio.

- Antonio.

- [Antonio] Antonio.

[speaks foreign language]

- I don't know how to say it,

I'm happy.

- [Antonio] Contenta.



- Contenta?

[speaks foreign language]

- [Antonio] You are happy here.

- I am happy here.

[speaks foreign language]

It's beautiful.

- [Antonio] Yeah is this
your first time here?

- Si.

- [Antonio] Si, where you from?

[speaks foreign language]

- What happened?

[speaks foreign language]

Excuse me.

- Yeah.



- Where is El Ganzo hotel?

- Ganzo, [mumbles] right there.

- This?

- Right there, [mumbles].

[soft music]

[bell rings]

[soft music]

- Holla, welcome to
the hotel El Ganzo.

- [Woman] Holla.

- Go ahead please,
welcome to the [mumbles].

- [Lizzy] Thank you.

- [speaks foreign language]
Welcome to Hotel El Ganzo.

Miss Elisson we've
been expecting you.

- The hotel El Ganzo.

- [Billy] Is everything
alright Miss Elisson?

- Just a minute.

Everything is fine.

- Wonderful.

Well we have here room 202,

I think you'll
really love the room

so if you just follow me,
I'd love to show it to you.

Here is your suit Miss Elisson.

Most of the rooms feature
art from local artists,

just one of the quirks
of the hotel El Ganzo.

Here is your living room.

Here is a wonderful
view in the morning,

a sea of the ocean.

Your bed, very comfortable bed,

full bath, full shower,
everything you need right here.

Everything you need.

So if you need anything
from me whatsoever,

my name is Billy
Olsen, they all know me

down at the front desk,

they'll be happy to
get a hold of me,

if you need anything
at all, lunch is at 11,

begin at 11:00 a.m.
to about 3:00 p.m.

Cocktail and dinner begins
4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.,

please join us anytime for that.

Again if you need anything
whatsoever just call down

at the front desk,

have a good night Miss Elisson.

[soft music]

- Hello.

[guitar music]

Do you have my suitcase?

- No, there were no bags.

- No, just a suitcase.

[speaks foreign language]

- No.

- One bag suitcase.

- What does it look like?

- It's just a suitcase.

- Is it black or gray or.

- Well it's was just my bag.

- Excuse me.

- Hello, hello.

Hi, would it be
alright if I sat here?

- Sure.

- Thank you.

- [Guy Voiceover] You
waiting for someone?

- Are you waiting for someone?

- Oh.

I'm sorry you're just the
only person I know here.

- Do you know who I am?

- Hmmm.

- Have we met?

- In there.

- Last night, I did
see you come in.

- I saw you.

Oh.

- [Guy] Are you alright?

- I just never knew it
was gonna be so warm.

I don't know how
to say this but I.

- Just say it.

- I think I'm feeling a
little bit disoriented.

- Do I know you?

- Do you love it here?

- [Guy] What's your name?

- I like, Lizzy, do you?

- Do I like it, it's your name.

- You have such beautiful eyes.

- [laughs] Is a trick?

- What are you drawing?

- I'm just brainstorming.

There's an artist that I love
a lot who lives here in Mexico

and I'm just trying
to figure out

what's the thought
behind his ideas,

what's his thought process?

I don't know what I'm doing.

- What are you doing here?

- I'm a photographer,
for travel, destinations,

travel magazines,
blogs, that sort of uhm.

What do you do?

- I'm a writer for
travel magazines.

- We have something in common.

- We have something in common.

You know what I like to do?

I just like to come to a
place and see what's going on

and then I write about it.

- What are you doing later?

- Today?

- Yeah.

- I don't know, what do we do?

- I wanna take
some photos around

just to help me think
and conceptualize,

you wanna come with me?

- Help you conceptualize?

- No just to talk.

- Oh.

- Company.

- Uhmm.

- Is that okay, unless you're
waiting for somebody else

I totally understand.

- I would really
like that a lot,

that would be great.

I think it's
beautiful don't you?

- You are getting
stranger by the second.

[soft music]

- What's your name?

- Guy.

- Guy?

I had no idea what was
out there, I mean really,

it was quite an adventure.

- You do not know what wars
are going on down there

where the spirit meets the bone.

Miller Williams.

- You do not know what wars
are going on down there.

- Where the spirit
meets the bone.

Alfred [laughter], yes it's.

Wait I just, I just,
before you talk,

I had a breakthrough today,

not that, like the
beginning of a breakthrough,

like I might be able to figure
out what exactly I wanna do,

first wait wait wait,
hold on, wait, wait, wait,

let me speak, let me speak.

I just jumped into the ocean.

I met a friend here
and we just went crazy

and we both just
jumped into the ocean

and there were fish

and there was and, I mean
something broke for me.

I know, I know, oh,

why do you always do that?

I just want to tell
you, I'm happy,

I just want to tell you like,

something, you're not
here so I can't call you

every single day because
these calls cost money

and I just want to tell you that

I had a really big
breakthrough moment.

Yes. Don't scream at me.

Don't scream at me.

I was gonna call you, I
was gonna call you okay.

Alfred I'm going, I'm going,

no I don't want to talk to you,

I don't want to talk to you.

Go fuck yourself first.

[slow music]

- Today is something I
will never ever forget.

- Welcome back, welcome
back, how was your trip?

- My name is Lizzy,
I'm checking in today.

- As I know, you checked
in last night, room 202.

- Have you found my bag yet?

- Oh, I'm so sorry Miss Elisson,

we haven't located it but,

should we, I'll bring
it to your suite myself.

- Thank you.

- Off course.

- Thank you for understanding,
thank you very much.

- My pleasure.

- What was that all about?

You alright?

- Yes.

- You sure?

- Sure.

- Are you okay?

- Yes.

- Will you have a drink with me?

- Yes.

A drink, drink.

- No so so, you just, you
wanna know who I'm with?

I'm with nobody, I'm with
nobody out here, I'm with,

hold on a second,

if, let me speak, let me speak,

if it's so fucking important,
why didn't you come?

I asked you to come and
you said you couldn't come,

you didn't want to come.

No, no, don't give, see
you do this all the time,

everything everything,

you gotta draw all the fucking
attention to you, okay.

This is my time,
this is my time,

I'm gonna do something special,

I'm going to breakthrough.

Hello.

♪ I said oh Chavo
I don't believe you

♪ He said think what you like

♪ Take Pablo's son too

♪ Well that concluded
my favorite night

♪ 'Cause a story like
this isn't easy to find

♪ Let's have a toast
to the ghost El Ganzo

♪ Let's have a toast
to the ghost El Ganzo

♪ Oh let's have a toast
to the ghost of El Ganzo

[audience applause]

- Thank you, thank
you very much.

- I think I might
call it a night.

- [Man] This next song, this
is the first song that I wrote

when I got here to Cobo

and when I first got here
I didn't have anything

to write about at all,

it's impossible to write a song

because usually when
you're writing songs,

you're writing about like
uh, some sort of tragedy

or turmoil in your
life, heartbreak or,

something like that, it's really
hard to write a happy song.

Just finished a book,
sort of, write this song

about following, well the
book is about following

the journey of life so,
this song is sort of

also, just about
following life's journey,

it's called Loving the Journey

[guitar music]

- Hello.

- Hmmmm, where is the other guy?

- Who?

- The guy, the manager?

- Oh Billy, okay, just a second.

- Hi.

- Hello Miss Elisson.

- Hi.

- What can I do for you?

- Look I know that
you can't find my bag.

- Again I apologize.

- No it's fine, but while
you were looking for it

you didn't happen to come
across a bear did you?

- I'm sorry bear,
like a real bear?

- No, no just like
a child's bear.

- Like a stuffed animal.

- Yeah.

- I don't believe so but
I can certainly check

the lost and found for you.

- Oh that would be
great, thank you.

- Excuse me.

- Yeah.

- We had a penguin, a
sea turtle and a dolphin

but no bear.

- No bear.

- No, I'm so sorry again.

- It's fine.

- Is everything okay?

- Oh sure, thank you.

- Okay.

- Oh.

- What's this I
hear about a bear?

- Oh, did you just hear that?

- Yeah.

- Okay, sometimes,
when I'm all alone

and I can't sleep at night,

I sleep with my bear.

- That's so cute.

Sometimes when I can't
sleep I end up drinking.

- I like Tequila.

- Would you drink some
Tequila with me tonight?

- Yeah.

- [Guy] So you're married?

- No.

- Divorced?

- Hmmm hm.

What about you?

- Well no, not married.

- You're with someone?

- Yes, and I have a partner.

- How is that?

- Some couples they look
at each other, they just,

all they do is they just
look toward each other,

I don't know it's kind of,

I don't know vein
or small minded.

I like to think of it like,
like when you have a partner

you're sort of, you're
looking out together,

the both of you,
you're doing this

with the person that you love.

Yeah you're sort of on this
journey, this experience,

this challenge together.

And there's nothing more
beautiful than that.

- Tell you something
kind of embarrassing.

- Please.

- When I went to go look
for my bear tonight,

I think I, unconsciously
I was really hoping

I'd run into you.

- You want another drink? Okay.

I can't satisfy him, he's
always completely dissatisfied

with everything that I do.

I can't do anything right.

If I'm a success,
then I'm showing off

or I'm, I don't know,

if nothing is going
on then it's like,

why aren't you out there,

why aren't you pushing yourself,

where are you?

When are you coming home?

Or if I'm home it's
like, when are you going,

why are you here?

And, I don't know,
it's just confusing.

I don't know if I'm
coming or if I'm going,

it's frustrating, it's
like how many times

do you have to
fight with somebody.

- Well sometimes,
arguing, banter,

it's a form of intimacy.

- It's not like I'm just
trying to have a fight,

it's just that,
that's just how it is,

we're just two different people.

- People get stuck,
they get scared.

- And then life happens ya know.

- Being alone can.

- [Guy] What was that?

- You know either way you,

I'm glad I ran into you.

- A toast to sleeping
with our bears.

- To everything in the world.

- Come here.

- Woah.

- Give me your mouth.

- Are you going?

- Yeah. Are you take this?

- Oh sure, why don't I
walk you to your room?

- Okay.

- This it?

- No.

- Is this it?

Goodnight.

[door knocks]

Hello, who is it?

- [Billy] Billy
from the front desk.

- Oh, hi Billy.

- Good morning, do I
have a surprise for you.

I found your bag.

- My bag.

Yeah.

Oh, hey.

- You look different.

Do you wanna come with me?

- Yeah.

Let me get my things.

I've gone from thinking
this is woman and man

to man and himself

and now it's, farther back again

it becomes man and woman.

This one's the same,
it just gets up longer.

[soft music]

- A friend of mine told
me about this place.

He said just, you can find
a little bit of peace,

maybe to clear my
head a little bit.

I don't know about
you but I feel like

there's something here.

Like a spirit or,
something with people

that we're here.

- I like the birds.

Close your eyes you can hear it.

- [Guy] What do you hear?

- So many different
sounds of birds.

- This is the kind of place
that you can get lost in.

Fine line between the
past and the present here

and you're sort of in the
middle of two worlds, ya know.

That's where I wanna be.

[bright music]

- How often do you and your
boyfriend sleep together?

- That's none of your business.

- Why?

- Because it's private.

- I'm curious.

- I know you're curious.

- Why'd you paint your
fingernails black?

- You heard of Afro punk.

- No.

- Well I've been Afro punk
before Afro punk was Afro punk.

- Hmmmm.

- We can get yours done.

- Shit, I lost my ring.

I remember laying it when we
were laying down, I remember,

it was kind of heavy.

- In the grass,
by the sculptures?

- Yeah.

- So maybe it's there.

- What is happening to me?

[speaks foreign language]

I have a memory of that.

This man, he makes these rings

and he tells stories about them.

He said that that was
to kind of bring clarity

to remind you to keep
your bullshit aside.

[slow music]

- [Woman] Hello,
welcome, can I help.

[speaks foreign language]

- I'm fine, and how are you too?

- This is a beautiful store.

- Thank you,
welcome to my place.

I have many new things,

maybe we can find something
you really like it.

Are you looking for
something specific?

- I'm not really sure.

- Open your eyes, open your soul

and maybe something
can talk to you.

Things like this have owners

and they're looking
for a specific person.

Enjoy my place, if you need
my help just let me know.

- Okay, thank you.

- [Woman] You're welcome.

- Me y'amas is Lizzy.

- Lizzy, [mumbles],
welcome to my place.

- [Lizzy] It's a
pleasure to meet you.

- [Woman] I'm here okay.

[soft music]

- Let me tell you something
about the Tequilas,

did you know the difference
between the white

and the golden color?

- Hmmm hm.

- The white, this is strong shot

and you have to drink with
piece of lemon and salt.

And the golden color,
the time have more years

inside the bottles and
this is [mumbles] and good.

Have soul.

- [Lizzy] Salt?

- Soul.
- Soul.

- Exactly.

- [Lizzy] Soul exactly.

- [Woman] Do you want
to taste a little bit?

- Okay.

- Maybe you want to try
on a different dress

perfect for this weather

and you can walking around
more comfortably on the street,

do you like the idea?

- That would be great,
thank you, yeah.

- I didn't answer
you before but, no,

we haven't done
anything in a long time.

Probably like three
or four months.

Without someone holding
you or touching you or,

being with you.

So I didn't mean to snap
at you the way that I did.

It's very lonely.

Being with someone
whose idea of affection

is just to buy you a present

and it's like I'm that little
boy whose father goes away

and all you want him to do is
to toss a football with you

and then he comes
home with a toy car.

All I want to do is
just to be with someone,

to share my life with someone

and so I make these
trips all over the world,

searching for something
that I can't find at home.

By the way you look very nice.

- I think I'm lonely too.

- Hey, Miss Elisson,
Miss Elisson,

the bags I delivered actually
belong to somebody else

and I need to get them to them

as soon as possible

so if I can go to
your room and get them

that would be fantastic.

- Really.

- It's true, again I apologize

but they are looking for them

and it's really important
that I get em to them

as soon as possible.

- That was not my bag?

- No it wasn't your bag,
I would be happy to.

- Let's go.

- Yes accompany, thank you.

[door knocks]

♪ Woke up one morning,
I feel kinda right

♪ I had a dream I was
running all through the night

♪ And then you called me up

♪ You felt that way too

♪ So we started thinking
about what we could do

♪ Oh we're so far ahead

♪ And all of this madness,
this running around

♪ Our pastor so no one can see

♪ We haven't tried

♪ We just came to our senses

♪ And we sat aside while
the world caught up

♪ While the world caught up

♪ While the world
caught up with us oh

[soft music]

♪ While the world caught up

♪ While the world caught up

♪ While the world caught up

♪ With us, oh oh

- Here you go mam, fresh eggs.

[mumbles]

- No.

- I'm just asking.

- [speaks foreign language]
Miss Elisson, good morning.

How is your breakfast?

- Sublime.

- I'm so happy great,

is there anything
that I can get for you

or do for you today?

- No thank you.

- [speaks foreign
language] have a good day.

- Billy.

- Yes.

- How did a gringo like
you get a job working here?

- Actually like you I
came here on vacation

and liked it so much I stayed.

- Is that true?

- Well kind off, I actually
came here for a girl,

I started out in the kitchen,

she doesn't work here anymore.

- How much time do I have left?

- Hmmm, how much more
time do you have?

- When am I checking out?

- Sunday, so you have three
days left here at El Ganzo

and we'll be so
sad to see you go.

Well enjoy the rest of your
stay and have a great day.

- Adios.

- [Billy] Adios.

- [Lizzy Voiceover] Adios amigo.

- See you can't say
that over the phone

I want you to be here

when you say something
like that to me.

No there's no reason for
you to be jealous, no,

no nobody's gonna touch
me except for you.

No, it's just gonna be
a few more days and,

oh my god, you're going
back to her, she's nothing.

Okay, she's just a person
you meet in a hotel

and you hangout,
you have a few words

and then that's it, you
don't see them again.

Yes, I'm all yours.

I don't know she's fun
but she's a little weird

and she's not you.

No I'll never replace
you, you know that.

I told you I'm sorry.

I love you too baby.

Okay.

Okay I'll see you, I'll
see you in a few days.

You skyping or what?

[soft music]

- This you?

- Does it look like me?

- Hugo Thompson, yeah.

- I was gonna lie.

- I knew it.

- It is a lie, you meet
somebody that you don't know

and you don't know,
you're only gonna see them

for a few minutes, an hour,

so why put up the energy
to give your full name so,

I said Guy.

- I'm not weird.

- Who says you're weird?

- You.

- I never said you're weird,
where'd you hear that?

- I have some weird girl
wandering around the hotel,

yeah she's pretty weird.

- You listening to me?

- I found out I only
had three days left here

and I came to try to invite you

to go somewhere with me.

You've been such a kind person

and I cannot tell you how much
I appreciate your kindness.

Your world has been
a strange experience.

- Well I thought
I was pretty nice.

- Good.

- That stuff I said on
the phone I was just,

I was just talking,
I mean you get in

conversation with people

and they want to know
all your business

and that's why I just
said yeah you know,

it's just some crazy
lady, I didn't mean that,

that's not what I meant.

- Kinda crossed my mind
that you had referred to me

as wonderful, not weird.

- Okay.

- I mean that's just
what I'm saying.

- He doesn't know you though,

he doesn't know you so
I mean I can't say like,

oh this is a wonderful person

but then he's gonna be like,

what are you doing
with this person?

- He's gonna get
jealous of the girl.

- Exactly, exactly
and I'm with him,

you know what I mean.

- Freak at the hotel.

- You're not a freak.

You're not a freak,
don't say that.

- Oh.

- Okay I was stupid, I
said something stupid,

I didn't mean that, okay.

You're very special.

I've been here for a
couple of weeks now

and I've had like block

and I can't figure out
anything that I'm doing

and you're the first
person that I've spoken to

and that just kind of opened
my mind to other things

to just open my mind
to the possibilities.

I mean I'm not there
yet but it's there,

so don't say that.

- You're the only person
I know here you know that,

it doesn't mean a whole lot,

but it's important to me.

Just know that
you're here, okay.

- It's okay, it's okay.

Listen to me,
don't go, don't go,

listen to me, I'm
sorry, I'm sorry.

- Thank you.

- I'm very sorry.

Thank you.

[soft music in foreign language]

[Hugo laughs]

[Hugo whistles]

Now you should soften up baby.

Very nice, very nice.

- That was rough,
that was dastardly.

- What is that?

Dastardly, what is that?

- It's not a real word.

- Ow.

- Oh.

- Do you know how hard
I had to look for these?

- Yes I can't believe.

Did you have it the whole day?

- Yeah.

[speaks foreign language]

- Where are you going?

- Walking, walking again.

- Lizzy.

- We'll walk to the
ocean, then we can swim.

- [Hugo] You're not
making any sense.

- Just walk with me,
stay with me please.

The last time she walked,

we hit a deer on the
side of the road.

She jumped out of the
truck, she walked for days,

days and days, she
went all the way.

Tell her she finally
asked for help,

they checked her into a
facility of some sort,

concerned for her
condition they said,

both physical and mental.

We came to pick her up, she
slipped out the back door,

never saw home again.

She went far away, got a
new home, got a new job,

worked two years straight
and then she got fired.

I couldn't take it,
I had to get away.

[soft music]

[bright music]

Hello.

- Hey, hey.

- [Lizzy] Hi.

- I figured it out,
figured it out,

come on, come on, come on.

- Great, good.

- What's the last
thing that you remember

before El Ganzo.

- This room, big, empty.

- What is your name?

- [Lizzy] Lizzy.

- Lizzy?

- Elisson.

- Does that not ring a bell?

- What are you doing?

- Last night when I came home,

I turned on the TV

and there was a movie on

and it was you.

- I think that was
a long time ago.

- [Hugo] When?

Your story, that's what
you could remember.

I know who you are.

Come baby just let
me help you, okay,

I'm here with you.

Now what else do you remember,
you did that movie and.

[Lizzy crying]

Oh oh oh, okay, alright,
what's the matter,

baby somebody hurt you.

- I just don't remember, I
don't remember anything anymore.

- [Hugo] You do remember,
you do remember.

- I can't, I don't know
what happened to me,

I don't know what
happened to me.

I don't know what
happened to me.

- Sweetheart, you don't
have to do this alone, okay,

I'm here with you, I'm
here with you okay.

It's okay.

You don't have to cry.

- Where'd you come from?

Where did you come from?

- I'm right here.

[door knocks]

That's for you baby
it's not for me.

- Miss Elisson.

Hello, how are you?

I have the most wonderful
surprise for you,

I found your bag and this
time it's really yours.

Your taxi driver dropped it off,

he said you left
it with the taxi

when you walked away,
after the accident.

- Where is he?

- Antonio, the driver?

- Yes.

- He left, he had to go to work
but he said he was so sorry

that he didn't get
you the bag sooner

but he's vehicle
was being fixed.

- Can you find him for me Billy?

- Off course, I'll look into it.

- Thank you.

- You're welcome.

- Thank you.

- [Billy] Have a good day.

- Can you come here?

Okay.

I left that movie
with a guy I met,

he was a poor person,
my furniture picker.

I went away with him,
the guy who hit the deer.

For two years, must
have been a long time,

I just didn't want to
be with him anymore,

I didn't want to be
that person anymore.

I told you about the walking
and there was the hospital

but it wasn't a long time,

it was just a short
time in a hospital.

- You're doing okay.

- Do you know how
crazy this was.

I read about this
hotel in a magazine

and look it's my bathing suit,

well I wanted to
come to this hotel

and have a vacation I
tell you, I didn't care

if it was the last day
of the rest of my life,

if that's all I ever did again

I just wanted to come here
and I don't really know why

I wanted to swim
in the ocean and I,

I don't wanna go back here.

I never wanna go
back here ever again.

- I just wanna have a
witness to my life, you know.

- I do.

[soft music]

[bright music]

Hello.

Antonio right.

[speaks foreign language]

- Hugo, Lizzy.

- Lizzy, you remember my name.

[speaks foreign language]

- Cheese.

[Antonio laughs]

Family own all this?

- Yeah.

[speaks foreign language]

- [Lizzy] The dog?

- [Antonio] Yeah.

- [Lizzy] With the sheep?

- Yeah, with the sheep,
he's like other sheep,

he take milk from the sheeps.

- [Lizzy] The dog.

- Yeah, he's like other sheep.

- So he thinks he's a sheep.

- [Antonio] Yeah,
he's another sheep.

[soft music]

- Now if you could be
any place in the world,

where would you be?

- Right here, right here.

[guitar music]

[soft song in foreign language]