Synopsis

Autumn, 1985.

A storm erupts in the Mediterranean Sea. A village is devastated, its crops laid to waste. A dead whale is found on the beach, stranded by the waves. The town authorities announce the carcass is carrying diseases, and that they will dynamite it. With his tractor, grape-harvesting trailer, and three kitchen knives, Corbac, a sick and misanthropic winemaker, tries to save the skeleton of the whale from this grisly fate. 

Day and night, the largest of Earth’s creatures is cut apart piece by piece in front of the village church, the school, its distillery; creating ripples of fear and anger amongst the tightly knit villagers. They know Corbac won’t stop until he is done. 

The villagers are left with no choice but to call his estranged daughter Mathilde, the only person who might be able to convince him to see reason.

Loosely adapted from the real life story of Jean-Louis and Patricia Fabre