The Longest Penalty Shot in the World

Fernando (Fernando Tejero) is a loser. A gray type, without ambition, that works like bookcases distributor in a supermarket of the quarter. In his free short whiles, he is a substitute keeper of a football team, a third regional one. In all the season he has not played a single minute. But the last Sunday of the league the referee indicates penalty and the regular keeper injures itself. Fernando must occupy the goal for the first time. If penalty scores, the team of the district will proclaim champion. If no, all the effort of a year will not have been worth for anything. When the penalty is just about to be kicked, a group of indignant fans with the referee invades the field and prevents the kick. The competition committee decides that the penalty must play the following Sunday, in the same goal, with same players and the field closed to the public. El Penalti más largo del mundo, (The Longest Penalty Shot in the World) is exactly the history of that week of delay.

Directed by Roberto Santiago, The Longest Penalty Shot in the World leans on a strong ensemble — Fernando Tejero, María Botto, Marta Larralde — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about comedy titles of 2005.