Big River Man

In February 2007, Martin Strel began an insane attempt to be the first person to swim the entire length of the world’s most dangerous river, the Amazon. The Fish Man, as he was called by the local tribes, is an endurance swimmer who swims rivers to highlight their pollution to the world. Martin is also a rather overweight horse‐burger loving Slovenian in his fifties, who drinks two bottles of red wine a day… even when swimming. During this epic journey he suffered from blisters, sunburn, exotic stomach illnesses, all the while trying to avoid piranhas, anacondas, crocodiles, alligators, river sharks and other tropical beasts. Director John Maringouin set out to make an environmentally aware documentary about an eccentric, larger‐than‐life Slovenian swimmer. He ended up journeying deep into the oppressively remote Amazonia, following Martin and his team into their own Heart Of Darkness as they descend into a nightmare of illness and insanity.