Cándida Losada
This 1985 Spanish film reveals one of the many terrible aspects of 16th century Spain, still plagued by the radical Christian Inquisition, one of a plethora of difficulties Spaniards faced at the time. Spanish super star Carmen Maura plays a nun who agrees to a selfless scam, a fake stigmata, only to avoid separation from her lover, another nun. It's a serious and passionate work, highlighting the theme of outspoken women-against-repression, seen in other good gay and lesbian films. This is not a lesbian "Nun sense" or another "Dark Habits" (by Almodovar, which also starred Carmen Maura, and also set in a Spanish convent, with some lesbian nuns). Perhaps, best of all, 'Extramuros' is realistic and frank. It isn't shy about its characters' sexuality. Their sexuality, and the film as a whole are genuine.
Julie is trying to start a new life after the tragic and eerie death of her possessive and domineering husband. After returning home, she is plagued by terrifying supernatural occurrences. A medium arrives at the house with a message from beyond, but Julie dismisses her warning.
Tristana is a young Spanish woman left to the care of Don Lope, a protective but impoverished aristocrat. Don sells his possessions to avoid manual labor and champions the causes of the dispossessed and downtrodden of society. He takes advantage of the vulnerable Tristana, who leaves him when she falls in love with Horacio. Unable to commit to him, she returns to Don Lope when she falls ill. He asks for her hand in marriage, and she accepts after losing her leg to cancer. She chooses to remain in a passionless union rather than be subject to the harsh realities of a society that refuses to change to the needs of women. Taken from the novel by celebrated author Benito Perez Galdos.
Mario Leyva, famous singer in full glory harassed every day more for his "fans", takes the life that they allow him, dedicated to his art and directed professionally by his "manager". His popularity makes him be mixed in the advertising of a brand of cigarettes by advertising phrases that repeat themselves in all the languages.
Southern France, 19th century. Teresa, a young girl, arrives at an isolated female boarding school that is tyrannically mastered by Mrs. Fourneau, the strict headmistress, whose protective shadow haunts Luis, her weak son.
Isabel returns to Spain, after several years of absence, to be cured of a neurosis. His daughter Ana, whom he has not seen in all this time, decides to spend the holidays with her, taking advantage of the fact that her boyfriend has gone to study in Germany. During her stay in the sanatorium, Ana meets Mario, an attractive young man somewhat unbalanced, who tries to seduce her. Although at first she does not show any interest, little by little she becomes attracted to him.
An American secret agent is sent to Europe to track down a ring of counterfeiters. His investigation takes him from Rome to Albania, where he gets involved with a sexy Albanian police commissioner.
Alfredo is a cheerful party animal, son of a wealthy man. Alfredo's brother, a young very focused and mature boy, and their father try unsuccessfully to change the profligate lifestyle of Alfredo to remedy the dissolute life of the latter, which, by all indications, is clearly gay.
A modern re-telling of the Robinson Crusoe story. But, this time, our hero is a macguivering expert. So he creates himself a modern paradise based on his beloved delivery tricycle that we saw in the previous movie"The tricyclist".
As he shows a considerably higher interest in night life and vaudeville chorus girls than in textbooks, Gerardo Roquer is sent by his father from Madrid to the University of Santiago de Compostela, with the purpose of having him center in studying. There, Gerardo ends living in the "Casa de la Troya" boarding house, where he makes good friends in other students, and falls in love with the beautiful Carmiña Castro. But this love is not approved by her uncle and aunt, who prefer the foppish Octavio (with whom they have a debt) for her.
Father Luis Lastra is a young priest who does his job in the village of Peñascosa. There he meets Marta, a beautiful parishioner very interested in religious matters, so much that she convinces the priest to accompany her to the convent to become a cloistered nun. Along the way, they have to stop at an inn for the night and that's where Father Luis will test his faith.
The romance between a Spanish correspondent and an Argentine daughter of Poles during the Nazi invasion of Poland.
Carmen and Ángel are in love but her mother doesn't approve their relationship. When Carmen gets pregned, Ángel decides to to go the city to star a career as a singer and earn enough money to take Carmen with him, but he never returns and Carmen, scared of her parents, decides to run from home and embrace a disolated life as a prostitute.
Based on the novel of Wenceslao Fernández Flórez, this comedy achieved certain recognition.
