Emma Suarez Movies

The infamous man from La Mancha and his devoted sidekick embark on a new quest in this slightly off-kilter version of author Miguel de Cervantes' classic novel Don Quixote, as envisioned by director and screenwriter Manuel Gutierrez Aragon in his 2002 adaptation entitled Don Quixote, Knight Errant. Around the year 1615, Don Quixote (Juan Luis Galiardo) and Sancho Panza (Carlos Iglesias) enjoy the lives of celebrities, as the public was made well aware of their exploits thanks to the writings of De Cervantes. Now well into the twilight of his life, the eccentric nobleman gets the notion that a horde of angry Turks are about to launch a naval attack and Quixote decides it is once again time to suit up in the name of honor. As Quixote and Panza head out to meet their "foes," the anachronistic duo draws the attention and derision of their fellow countrymen. But no matter, Panza is perfectly content to let Quixote do his own thing -- even going so far as to instigate the knight's sense of daring-do, as the men head out to for what may be their final adventure together. ~ Ryan Shriver, Rovi

While the Spanish Civil War had its roots in a series of internal political and economic crises, it was widely perceived as having serious implications in international affairs, and volunteers from a number of foreign nations arrived in Spain during the conflict -- some to fight alongside Franco's armies, others to join the Republican loyalists. Extranjeros De Si Mismos is a documentary centered around interviews with a number of veterans of the Spanish Civil War, including American and European freedom-fighters who aided the Republican cause as part of the International Brigade, Italians who arrived to defend Franco at the urging of Mussolini, and Spaniards who fought in the Franco-backed Blue Division -- which later went on to Russia to aid the German forces who helped defeat the Republicans. (The Blue Division veterans interviewed include Luis Ciges, later a noted actor, and Luis Berlanga, a respected director -- both of whom make clear that politics had little if anything to do with their decision to volunteer.) Narrated by actress Emma Suarez, Extranjeros De Si Mismos was shown in competition at Spain's Valladolid Film Festival in the fall of 2000. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

One of the finest filmmakers of Spain, Mario Camus turns his lens to a joyful and sad period of Spanish history in this historical drama about one man's struggle for a better life towards the end of the 18th century. Onofre Bouvila (Olivier Martinez) is a young man who has not had much luck in his short life. His father abandoned the family to make his fortune in Cuba and the boy grew up in misery with his suffering mother. Now grown up, he decides to make it in the big city and arrives in Barcelona on the eve of the Universal Exposition of 1888. He is immediately attracted to his landlord's beautiful daughter, Delfina (Emma Suarez), who has other plans for him. While the city is drowning in poverty and disease, the criminal gangs are having a field day. Onofre's attempts at finding a job fail. He is thrown out of his lodgings for lack of money to pay the rent. Just at that moment, Delfina appears with an answer to the problem. She puts him to work distributing revolutionary pamphlets for her anarchist organization to the workers at the Exposition. The relationship between the two young people soon turns into a passionate one, but a violent encounter with the police brings back unpleasant memories of the domestic misery Onofre left behind. He realizes that politics will not help him in his quest for fortune, which was the reason he came to Barcelona in the first place. The only thing standing in the way of social climber Onofre is his deep love for Delfina, and he is caught between ambition and love. La Ciudad de los Prodigios (The City of Marvels), which is based on Eduardo Mendoza's best-selling novel, was in competition at the 1999 Montreal World Film Festival. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, Rovi

A nation teeters on the brink of civil war as most of its citizens are mesmerized by a championship soccer match in this comic thriller. The Colombian military, under the command of Sgt. Garcia (Cesar Mora), are guarding a oil tower, owned by an American refinery, from attack by insurgent guerilla forces (led by Emma Suarez and Nicolas Montero) as Garcia tries to negotiate a settlement. Meanwhile, most Colombians are busy watching the national team take on Paraguay in the 1994 World Cup qualifiers. As Colombia's team scores a goal, a helicopter pilot gets so excited that he loses control of his vehicle and crashes into the tower, and suddenly all hell breaks loose. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Love leads to vengeance in this thriller that is based on a novel by Joaquin Leguina. Inspector Paco attends a funeral where he encounters his former police partner Angel. This inspires a flashback. The year was 1942, the Spanish Civil War raged, and Paco and Angel were investigating a triple homicide that occurred in the home of the deceased. Back at the funeral, the two meet Julia, the daughter of the dead man whom they knew back during the war. She tells Angel all the details of her life since then and in so doing gives him the clues he needs to finally solve the case. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Yoshio (Futoshi Kasagawa) is on his first trip outside of Japan, on the way to Spain. He takes a fancy to his stewardess, Rita (Emma Suarez), and has her pose with him for a photograph before picking up his luggage. It turns out that the luggage he and Rita carry is identical, and a mix-up happens immediately. Before he can straighten it out, he is hit by a car and loses his memory except for the name, Rita. He is taken in charge by a woman who proves to be Rita's mother, and circumstances conspire to bring him and Rita together again. That's quite an adventure for a mild man who won this trip as a contestant on a Japanese game show. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

When he sees a motorcycle go over the side of the boardwalk at San Sebastian, crashing onto the beach, Jota goes to see what happened. He discovers that the vehicle was being driven by an attractive young woman. He calls an ambulance and gets onto it with her. When the emergency medical staff discover that she has amnesia, Jota takes advantage of the situation to claim that she's been living with him for the past few years. After she gets out of the hospital, the young woman accompanies him to a camping resort called "The Red Squirrel," and they have a number of adventures involving her obnoxious husband, who has been looking for her, and an equally obnoxious campsite neighbor. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In Basque country, feuds, governments, and wars come and go, while cows placidly observe the strange behaviors of the humans who care for them. In 1875, during a massacre inspired by an out-of-control family feud, a farmer and his friend find themselves in a ditch together. One of them dies, and the other survives by playing possum using his friend's blood as a disguise. As the film flashes forward in time, the man is now a grandfather who amuses himself by painting the tranquil gaze of cows over and over again, while he observes that his son is having an affair with his dead friend's granddaughter. Finally, during the Civil War in 1936, violence again mars the life of the family, as the illegitimate son of the earlier affair attempts to make headway with his life. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Some people would say that Mario is a Basque terrorist, but he would probably say that he is simply a fervent activist on behalf of the Basque nationalist movement. In either case, he occasionally blows things up with the intention of destabilizing things where he lives. Some of these "activists" hang out at a bar called the White Dove, and the owner's daughter has begun forging relationships with them. Eventually a bomb blows up the bar and its apolitical owner, who knows too much for someone not deeply committed to the cause ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this supernatural thriller, Eve is a woman whose nine-year old daughter gives every evidence of having strange occult powers. Within two days of giving birth to her, Eve hit a strange woman while driving, and at the same time lost her husband. Some have asserted that the movie's story bears some relation to the Biblical story of Lilith. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This routine, dark melodrama features the downward slide of Daniel (Antonio Canto), a respectable young man who is transformed by his single-minded, blind pursuit of Helena, an attractive older woman (Amparo Munoz). After Daniel breaks his jaw in an accident (and therefore cannot speak much), he is partially cut off from those around him. Whether for that reason or another, he turns his back on his daily life to chase after Helena once they have met. His neurotic pursuit of the woman takes him into a demi-monde of profligates and decadence, a downward spiral that seems destined to end in tragedy unless he can pull himself out in time. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi