Monument Releasing has acquired North American theatrical rights to “The Fishbowl,” which recently premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. The movie will debut in U.S. theaters in March 2025, coinciding with Puerto Rican Emancipation Day on March 21. A streaming release will follow on May 21, 2025.
The official Sundance synopsis for the movie, which is set on the island of Vieques, a U.S. military testing ground for toxic munitions and is one of the few Puerto Rican-produced features to debut at the festival, follows: “After years of remission, Noelia’s cancer has returned and is spreading quickly. Exhausted by relentless treatment plans and pills that do more harm than good, she seeks another way out. Brushing aside her boyfriend Jorge’s well-meaning but suffocating gestures, she heads back to Vieques, the blissful eastern Puerto Rican island where she grew up; a land grappling with its own poisoning after decades of contamination from U.S. Army operations. With Hurricane Irma closing in, and alongside her mother in the serene comforts of home, Noelia looks for an answer to her pain in the land she’s always been intertwined with.
After years of remission, Noelia’s cancer has returned and is spreading quickly. Exhausted by relentless treatment plans and pills that do more harm than good, she seeks another way out. Brushing aside her boyfriend Jorge’s well-meaning but suffocating gestures, she heads back to Vieques, the blissful eastern Puerto Rican island where she grew up; a land grappling with its own poisoning after decades of contamination from U.S. Army operations. With Hurricane Irma closing in, and alongside her mother in the serene comforts of home, Noelia looks for an answer to her pain in the land she’s always been intertwined with.”
Producers are Canica Films, Solita Films and Auna Producciones.
In an official release, Monument Releasing said, “The history of Puerto Rico is a parallel to the history of colonization and the rise of the United States as a world power. ‘The Fishbowl’ takes this multi-century narrative and focuses it on a very human and personal story, set in modern times. Told with an empathetic paintbrush we believe audiences will be excited to learn more about the island’s story and will relate to the strong women that populate this magnificent film, both in front of and behind the camera.”
