Julio Fernández Movies

2009  
 
Jaume Balaguero and Paco Plaza return to scare the pants off of audiences once again with this follow-up to their Spanish chiller [REC], which centered on a trapped TV news crew in a quarantined apartment building whose inhabitants are infected with a virus that turns them homicidal. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

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2009  
 
Eight strangers engaged in an intense game of experts-only paintball find their friendly game taking a terrifying turn when one member of the team begins playing by a different set of rules. It started as a remote raw battle of wits and wiles set against the backdrop of majestic wilderness. With each shot fired, the stakes grew higher. But something horrible has happened, and what was once a team sport has become a relentless struggle for individual survival. The danger growing by the minute, the combatants gradually come to realize that their greatest adversary may be the very game they set out to play. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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2008  
 
Like its predecessor -- the 2006 Hairy Tooth Fairy -- this Argentine children's film combines CG-animated characters and live-action human actors. It continues the tale of Perez, the sweet-natured, talking mouse whose nighttime job involves slipping into the bedrooms of young children, collecting the baby teeth under their pillows, and depositing coins in return. But that only represents half of his obligations; during the day, he works on a pearl ship, and the demands of two careers threaten to push him to the brink of exhaustion. Then, one night, Perez risks being found out when he slips into the room of Lucas and discovers that the little boy is both awake and waiting for him. With no other options, Perez waits for Lucas to fall asleep, and dozes off himself; he's then discovered by an attractive female mouse, Lola, who lives in Lucas' residence. The two escape from the bedroom together and forge a fast bond, and Lola teaches Perez salsa and bachata dancing; meanwhile, a vile show business producer named Gil Penkoff devises a crazy scheme that involves capturing Perez, making a spectacle out of him, and turning a profit off of him. To accomplish this goal, Penkoff strikes a deal with Lucas, so eager to catch a glimpse of Perez that he agrees to set a trap for the poor mouse the next time one of his teeth falls out. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Fernando Guillen CuervoClaudia Fontan, (more)
2008  
R  
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Jay Hernandez, Jennifer Carpenter, and Johnathon Schaech star in this remake of Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza's successful, Spanish-language horror film [REC], which follows a television reporter and her cameraman as they fall under a mysterious quarantine issued on an inner-city apartment building. Television reporter Angela Vidal (Carpenter) and her trusty cameraman (Steve Harris) were documenting a night in the life of a Los Angeles fire station crew when the firefighters were summoned to a nearby apartment building to answer a routine 911 call. Upon arriving at the scene, Angela and company discover that police have already arrived to investigate the blood-curdling screams ringing out from one of the apartments. One of the women living in the building has been infected with something terrible, but what? When a few of the other residents are viciously attacked, they try to escape and discover that the CDC has quarantined the building. The officials in charge won't relay any information to those trapped inside the building, and it's impossible to seek information from the outside since telephone, Internet, television, and cell-phone access have all been cut off. By the time the quarantine is lifted, the intrepid cameraman's chilling footage provides the only evidence of the horrors that unfolded on that terrible night. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Jennifer CarpenterSteve Harris, (more)
2008  
R  
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When an American couple (Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer) traveling from China to Moscow on the Trans-Siberian Railway meets an outwardly friendly couple (Eduardo Noriega and Kate Mara) traveling the same route, deception soon gives way to murder in The Machinist director Brad Anderson's tense tale of international intrigue. Ben Kingsley and Thomas Kretschmann co-star as a pair of Russian police officers striving to solve the case and stop the rising body count. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Woody HarrelsonEmily Mortimer, (more)
2008  
 
As the title implies, Christian Molina's no-prisoners erotic drama takes a head-on plunge into the complex world of a nymphomaniac. Belen Fabra stars as Val, a svelte 28-year-old young woman with an insatiable sexual appetite and a towering level of erotic curiosity, both of which propel her on to one bedroom liaison after another. She spends her days bedding countless lovers and making copulation the centerpiece of her world; in time, Val's obsessions prompt her to build a career out of prostitution and help her find legitimate love with a man. The legendary Geraldine Chaplin, daughter of Charles Chaplin and ex-romantic partner of Carlos Saura, contributes a supporting role as Abuela. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Belén FabraLeonardo Sbaraglia, (more)
2007  
 
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Folks are literally dying to make room in a desirable neighborhood in this black comedy from Spain. Madrid's once-decaying Chueca district has suddenly become fashionable with gay couples looking for flats in vintage-style buildings, and Victor (Pablo Puyol) is a real estate agent determined to make the most of the neighborhood's new profitability. However, a number of choice properties are currently home to elderly women who've lived there for decades and have no intention of moving. Victor isn't about to let a little thing like uncooperative tenants stop him from signing new leases with wealthy clients, and at night he becomes a bloodthirsty killer, murdering old ladies and renting out their now empty flats. One gay couple who've already been living in Chueca are Leo (Pepon Nieto), a driving instructor, and Rey (Carlos Fuentes), who is between jobs. Leo and Rey are flabby, middle-aged and not in step with Chueca's new image, which has already made them a target in Victor's eyes, but when Rey's harridan mother Antonia (Concha Velasco) moves into the building, their days could well be numbered. Chuecatown was the first theatrical feature from writer and director Juan Flahn. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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2007  
 
Mexican folklore melds with J-horror elements and the brooding atmospherics of Spanish horror specialist Jaume Balaguero in director Rigoberto Castaneda's loose adaptation of the La Llorona legend - a frightening tale that has been passed down from parent to child for generations. Agata and Catalina Hameran are twin siblings whose already powerful bond was infinitely intensified when their mother suffered an unusually traumatic death. It was on that day that the sisters discovered they have the power to communicate telepathically, regardless of the physical distance between them. One night, when Agata is badly injured in an accident on the 31st kilometer of a dark road that runs alongside the forests of Mexico City, Catalina experiences an overwhelming wave of dread. While Agata was rendered comatose in the accident, Catalina continues to hear her sister cry out in agony from some alternate plane of reality and realizes that something is horribly wrong. Compelled to explore the history of this lonely stretch of road after a series of bizarre supernatural occurrences, Catalina soon finds out that Agata wasn't the first person to suffer tragedy at the 31st kilometer marker, and vows to uncover the connecting factor between this strange series of seemingly unrelated accidents. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Iliana FoxAdria Collado, (more)
2007  
 
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Timothy Hutton (Ordinary People, Made in Heaven) stars in the direct-to-video psychological thriller The Kovak Box. He portrays David Norton, a novelist and control freak who builds his life around the strategic manipulation of his characters and storylines. But suddenly, Norton watches his own life spin rapidly out of control when he is plunged into a bizarre series of events. Upon arrival in an exotic Mediterranean locale for a business conference, Norton receives the devastating news that his wife just received a mysterious phone call and subsequently threw herself from the balcony of their apartment building. One at a time, each of Norton's friends and family members suffer from the same inexplicable fate. The author then searches desperately for answers and an escape from this black hole of terror, as the world closes in around him. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Timothy HuttonLucia Jimenez, (more)
2007  
 
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Miguel de Cervantes' classic tale of an errant but idealistic knight gets retold from a new perspective in this animated comedy. In Donkey Xote, Rucio (voice of Luis Posada) is a donkey owned by Sancho Panza (voice of Andreu Buenafuente), and Rucio offers to tell us the inside scoop about his master and his partner Don Quixote (voice of Jose Luis Gil). According to the donkey, Don Quixote was actually a handsome gentleman who longed for the hand of the beautiful Dulcinea (Sonia Ferrer). However, in this version of the story, Dulcinea has a hard time choosing between the knight and his loyal sidekick Sancho Panza, and their rivalry leads them on a journey across Spain to Barcelona as they vie for the beautiful woman's affections. Donkey Xote was directed by Jose Pozo, who previously brought a classic tale of Spain's past to the screen with 2003's El Cid: The Legend. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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2007  
 
Inspired by a series of brutal, true life murders that shocked citizens of Buenos Aires at the turn of the 20th Century, director/screenwriter Jorge Algora's horrific thriller centers on a ten year old boy suspected of being a sadistic killer. The year is 1912, and the town of Buenos Aires is being held in the icy cold grip of fear. Ten year-old Mateo (Juan Ciancio) has been experiencing a disturbing series of extremely vivid visions that would seem to suggest that he witnessed the killings firsthand. When word gets out about Mateo's strange case of second sight, many of the locals begin to suspect that it is actually he who is committing these unspeakable acts. Meanwhile, as the body count continues to rise, Mateo's mother Estela (Maribel Verdú) enlists the aid of forensics specialist Dr. Soria (Chete Lera) in finding a rational explanation for the visions and helping the skeptical Police Inspector Petrie (Daniel Freire) locate the real killer in hopes of proving her son's innocence. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Maribel VerdúDaniel Freire, (more)
2007  
 
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After teaming up in 2002 for the dramatic music documentary OT: The Movie, Spanish horror specialists Jaume Balagueró (Darkness) and Paco Plaza (Second Name) join forces once again for this experimental frightener about a mysterious outbreak in an old tenement building. Reporter Angela (Manuela Velasco) and her trusty cameraman Pablo are following a local fire crew for a segment of their reality television series "When You're Asleep" when the firefighters receive a distress call from a nearby apartment building. An elderly woman has become locked in her apartment; a routine call by any account. The police are already on the scene, so now it's up to firemen Manu (Ferran Terraza) and Alex (David Vert) to break down the door and ensure that no harm has come to her. Upon arriving at the building, everything appears normal. But the calm atmosphere at the moment betrays the horrors that begin to unfold after the firemen break down the tenant's door and experience something that no one would believe had it not been captured on camera. Later, as the building is surrounded and quarantined, Pablo continues to roll tape to ensure that whatever the outcome of this terrifying situation may be, there will be some evidence to ensure that the truth gets out. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Manuel VelascoFerran Terraza, (more)
2007  
 
A lonely orphan sheds his fear of the dark by taking an illuminating journey into the realm where nighttime truly comes alive in co-directors Adrián García and Victor Maldonado's imaginative animated lullaby. By day, Tim experiences the same small joys and minor disappointments of most other children his age; it's only when the sun falls over the distant hills that the otherwise carefree orphan feels truly alone. Tim has a paralyzing fear of the dark, a fact that his fellow orphans take cruel advantage of at every opportunity. One night, as the shadows begin to lengthen over Tim's bed once again, he climbs up onto the rooftop to gaze at the nighttime sky. In the distance, a falling star crashes to the ground, and the concerned youngster begins to fear that somewhere in the heavens the universe has come undone. Accidentally tumbling into the nocturnal abyss, Tim is quickly rescued by a gruff beast known as The Cat Shepherd and plunged into a world known as Nocturna -- where wondrous creatures engineer the night with otherworldly precision. Supervising the nightly operations is the java-fueled Mr. Moka, who welcomes young Tim and introduces him to the various characters that help to ensure that the midnight hours run smoothly. Now that Tim understands just what makes the clock tick through the wee hours, he may finally be able to overcome his fear of the dark after all. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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2007  
R  
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An adopted girl returns to her homeland of Russia to explore the dilapidated mountain farm she has recently inherited, only to discover that it harbors a deadly secret in the feature debut from Aftermath director Nacho Cerdà. Shortly after the mysterious death of her birth mother, young Marie was adopted and brought to live in the United States. When Marie receives word that she has inherited an isolated farm in her native Russia, she soon sets out to explore the vast estate and peel away the thick gauze obscuring her secret-shrouded past. Confounded by the local's refusal to show her to the "damned" locale and determined not to give up after coming this far, Marie convinces a man to take her there only to discover that he has inexplicably vanished shortly after arrival. As Marie sets out to explore the ominous and expansive property alone, a surprise encounter with a man named Boris, who claims to have been lured to the house under similar circumstances, sets into motion a chilling series of events in which the ghosts of the past -- as well as deceased doppelgangers of both Marie and Boris -- prevent the frightened pair from leaving. In the terrifying hours that follow, both of these tormented lost souls will find that sometimes the past is best left forgotten. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Anastasia HilleKarel Roden, (more)
2006  
 
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First-time 31-year-old director Koldo Serra's thriller The Backwoods (AKA El bosque de las sombras, 2006) re-charts thematic territory covered, in years prior, by such well-worn classics as Deliverance and Southern Comfort, and such B-grade horror pictures as Savage Island (2004). With their nuptials crumbling, a married couple from London in their early thirties, Norman (Paddy Considine) and Lucy (sensual Virginie Ledoyen of The Beach) opt to take some time out with a sojourn to northern Spain's Basque region, in the Pyrenees. They arrive at a renovated farmhouse run by Paul (Gary Oldman) and Isabel (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) and are initially able to enjoy themselves, but the trip takes a decidedly ugly turn when Paul and Norman head out on a hunting expedition and discover a malformed, feral girl (an 'enfant sauvage') in a local cabin, apparently completely neglected. They transport her from the building in a sincere and honest attempt to help her, but only succeed in drawing forth the wrath of the savage and inbred local townspeople, who quake with rage at the thought of someone absconding with one of their own. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Paddy ConsidineVirginie Ledoyen, (more)
2006  
R  
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An obsessive French perfumer with a highly developed olfactory sense and an all-consuming drive to capture the essence of love eventually resorts to murder in his unrepentant quest to find the key ingredient for his recipe in director Tom Tykwer's adaptation of author Patrick Suskind's best-selling 1985 novel. Born in a fetid fish market and raised in a dilapidated orphanage, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Whishaw) toiled his childhood away in a rank tannery run by the thuggish Grimal (Sam Douglas). Subsequently obsessed by smell, Grenouille's keen olfactory sense becomes so finely tuned that it eventually overpowers such human qualities as love and compassion. Though he has indeed discovered the unmistakable scent of a woman, Grenouille finds it impossible to connect with the fairer sex on any sort of meaningful level. Roaming the streets of Paris late one night, Grenouille catches the scent of a young girl selling plums and impulsively strangles her, later sniffing her nude corpse in a twisted attempt to preserve the distinctive scent in his memory. After persuading legendary perfumer Giuseppe Baldini (Dustin Hoffman) to take him on as an apprentice, Grenouille travels to the town of Grasse in Southern France in order to learn the art of enfleurage at a firm run by the highly respected Mme. Arnulfi (Corinna Harfouch). It is there that Grenouille becomes dangerously drawn to the vestal aroma of the young and beautiful Laura (Rachel Hurd-Wood), the daughter of widower merchant Antione Richis (Alan Rickman). Soon driven to madness by such a pure scent, the spellbound Grenouille continues to claim the lives of the numerous young girls in a tragic attempt to bottle the impossibly elusive smell of virginal womanhood. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Ben WhishawAlan Rickman, (more)
2006  
 
Director Jaime Balagueró's short feature To Let constitutes an installment in the Spanish horror 'hexalogy' 6 Films to Keep You Awake (6 peliculas para no dormir, 2006) - a multi-director miniseries, comparable to the American Masters of Horror, originally produced for and aired on Spanish television. This episode concerns Carolina and Tony, a newly married, expectant couple searching for an apartment to rent. Caught in a pounding rainstorm, they happen upon an abandoned property with a third level available to rent. The facility hardly looks inviting: its floors are littered with dismembered store mannequins, its rooms seemingly vacant. The real estate agent nonetheless assures them that the building is being renovated, and that two families have just moved in. He then invites Carolina and Tony to visit the third floor apartment and have a look around. They unwittingly oblige him, and soon find themselves suddenly entrapped in a prison of horror ruled over by a venomous, malevolent landlady. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

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2006  
 
When a poorly paid departmental assistant and economics teacher wins a general knowledge contest that pays the biggest prize ever offered in the history of television, he finds himself reconsidering the views he previously imposed on his students and fellow faculty members in director Rodrigo Cortés' dark comedy. Martín Circo Martín (Leonardo Sbaraglia) has just won three million Euros on a television quiz show, but as always there's a catch: Martín's sizable cash prize will be received as "payment in kind." Of course it doesn't take Martín long to realize that he can't really afford to enjoy his winnings, and that being wealthy can cost a pretty penny. Later, as economic illusions, unsavory banking schemes, a parasitic sycophants begin to take their toll on the increasingly cynical Martín, the winner gradually finds himself assuming the role of economic dissident. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Leonardo SbaragliaChete Lera, (more)
2006  
 
Animation and live action mix to tell the tale of a kindly rodent who is kidnapped by money hungry criminals, and the little girl who makes it her mission to rescue him in director Juan Pablo Buscarini and screenwriter Enrique Cortes' captivating children's fantasy. When young Lucía (Delfina Varni) loses a tooth, her overworked mother Pilar (Ana María Orozco) and unemployed father Santiago (Fabián Mazzei) ensure her that all is well, and the Hairy Tooth Fairy will soon arrive to collect the tooth and leave Lucía some money. The debonair mouse known to humans as the Hairy Tooth Fairy is actually named Pérez, and Pérez has developed a complicated and rewarding system for transforming baby teeth into illustrious pearls. After Pérez collects the teeth, they are subsequently cleaned and shaped into pearls by hundreds of worker mice before being traded into jeweler Morientes for their fair weight in gold -- which Pérez in turn leaves for the excited children. Before Pérez can collect Lucía's tooth, however, he is suddenly kidnapped by a pair of scheming criminals who have grown wise to the industrious rodent's ingenious plan and want in on the take. Upon discovering that the legendary Hairy Tooth Fairy is in grave danger, the brave Lucía enlists the aid of her cousin Romiro (Nicolás Torcanowsky) in rescuing the frightened Pérez for the sake of children everywhere. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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2006  
 
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A handful of soldiers are faced with the ultimate temptation, which impacts their ethical standards in different ways in this comedy-drama from Colombia. Perlaza (Carlos Manuel Vesga), Lloreda (Diego Cadavid), Venegas (Juan Sebastian Aragon) and Porras (Manuel Jose Chaves) are four G.I.'s in the Colombian Army who are part of a counter-guerilla unit dedicated to ferreting out revolutionaries who've set up camp in the nation's jungles. Porras is married and a dedicated family man, while the others are single and like to party hard when they're not on duty. While cleaning up after they're ambushed by guerillas, one of the soldiers makes a surprising discovery -- several tubs buried in the jungle which hold $40 million in cash, hidden by drug kingpins in cahoots with the guerillas. While Porras predictably maintains they should leave the money alone and tell their commander Lizarazo (Marlon Moreno) about it, the others want to take the fortune for themselves. However, hiding $40 million from Lizarazo proves to be a difficult task, and spending the money without drawing attention to themselves isn't much easier. Directed by Rodrigo Triana, an established name in Colombian television, Sonar No Cuesta Nada (aka A Ton Of Luck) was based on a true story and became a major box-office attraction at home when it opened as its real-life counterparts were on trial. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Diego CadavidJuan Sebastian Aragon, (more)
2005  
R  
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Forty-years after a group of frightened villagers convinced authorities to build the dam that would flood the village of Marinbad and drown the evil that lurks therein, a village built next to the reservoir that sits placid over the cursed ground begins to experience a series of mysterious deaths. Decades ago a curse consumed Marinbad, and as the evil threatened to expand into the surrounding land the villagers successfully lobbied to have their once-peaceful hamlet flooded in hopes of keeping the malevolent spirits contained. Two decades have passed since that fateful attempt to wash away the sins of the land, and now something unspeakable has surfaced in the waters that cover Marinbad. When numerous area people go missing and scores of citizens perish under strange circumstances on the fortieth anniversary of the dam, it begins to appear as the one who was left for dead has risen from the depths. Director Brian Yuzna teams with The Fantastic Factory to adapt an original novel by author Matthew Costello. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Michael McKellRaquel Merono, (more)
2004  
 
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Daniel Robichaud's P3K: Pinocchio 3000 takes the famous fairy tale and sets it in the future. The childless Gepetto build a robot that looks like a boy. Gepetto has invented a special device that allows the robot to feel human emotion. The mayor of the town Gepetto lives in rules the city in a cruel and unforgiving way. When the mayor opens a play area for children in the town, Gepetto senses that the mayor has selfish motivations and sabotages the opening. The mayor seeks out his revenge by using Pinocchio for his own nefarious purposes. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Carlos LatreLucrecia, (more)

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