Ramón Sampedro, played by a Javier Bardem, is a Spanish man who became a quadriplegic at age 25. He spent the next 29 years of his life fighting for his right to an assisted suicide. “Mar Adentro” (“The Sea Inside”) beautifully tells his amazing and true life story.
Ramón was paralyzed from the neck down in a swimming accident. Every day afterwards, he wishes to end his life. But, as a quadriplegic, he is unable to commit suicide on his own. Ramón believes his life is not worth living and wishes to die with dignity, which he believes is his right as a human being. The film explores his relationship with his family, his lawyer Julia (Belén Rueda) and local girl Rosa (Lola Dueñas), who all have a place in Ramón’s life and opinions on his death wish. So many people love Ramón, but, ultimately, his only true love is death itself.
The film alone is a stunning work of art, but what makes it even better is Sampedro’s incredible true story. He worked his way through the Spanish court system, petitioning for his right to die without anyone being penalized for assisting him, and, eventually, his case was taken to the UN Human Rights Committee and lead to a Senatorial Committee on Euthanasia in 1999.
Don’t let the Spanish or the subtitles scare you away—this movie is worth the extra effort. In 2004, it won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year, and after watching you will definitely understand why. “Mar Adentro” is a brilliant look at the struggles of a quadriplegic and the controversial topic of euthanasia.
