Elena Anaya Movies

A night of passion between two people who've just met reveals more than they imagined in this erotic comedy-drama from Spanish filmmaker Julio Medem. Alba (Elena Anaya) is a beautiful woman from Spain who is on the last day of a vacation in Rome when she meets Natasha (Natasha Yarovenko), an attractive fellow tourist from Russia. Alba strikes up a conversation with Natasha, and as she's attracted to other women, Alba invites her to join her at her hotel. After some initial hesitation, Natasha agrees, and before long the two are in bed and making love. Over the next twelve hours, Alba and Natasha share stories of their lives, periodically stopping to order room service, illustrate their points with pictures on the internet and enjoy each other's bodies. Alba says her mother abandoned her family when she was a girl and she ended up as the kept woman of a wealthy Arab, while Natasha shares a story of her abusive father and her sister's career as an art historian. But are these women truly sharing the stories of their lives, or are they fabricating tales for the benefit of a stranger they may never see again? Habitacion en Roma (aka Room in Room) received its North American premiere at the 2010 Seattle International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A married magazine editor falls for one of her husband's old acquaintances while vacationing in Cairo in this romantic drama from writer/director Ruba Nadda. Juliette (Patricia Clarkson) is a magazine editor who is happily married to Mark (Tom McCamus), a Canadian diplomat. Their kids are all grown up, and they've planned a three-week vacation in Cairo together when Mark gets delayed in the Palestinian territories and Juliette is left to navigate the Egyptian capitol alone. In order to ensure his wife's safety until he arrives, Mark asks his former security officer and longtime friend Tareq (Alexander Siddig) to be her guide though the city. He never imagined that they would fall in love, but the more time Tareq and Juliette spend together the more difficult is becomes for them to deny their intense attraction to one another. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Adapted from the nonfiction book by Natalie Robins and Steven M.L. Aronson, Tom Kalin's Savage Grace recounts the true crime tale of the death of Barbara Baekeland. Stephen Dillane stars as Brooks Baekeland, the son of the man who invented Bakelite, one of the early forms of plastic. As the family fortune begins to decrease after years of wealth, Brooks marries Barbara (Julianne Moore), who desires to mingle in the highest social circles. They have a child, Antony, who is homosexual. Antony grows up to kill Barbara, in part because Barbara takes a personal interest in "curing" her son of his orientation. This was Kalin's first film since 1991's Swoon, a film about the infamous Leopold and Loeb murders. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

This tough and gritty French-language crime drama represents the premier installment in a two-part series of features on the life and doings of notorious Gallic hood Jacques Mesrine (1936-1979). Mesrine is played, in both installments, by actor Vincent Cassel, who reportedly underwent massive weight gain and weight loss to convincingly portray the volatile Mesrine at various periods of his life. Director Jean-François Richet begins in 1979, with Mesrine's uncommonly violent death, whereby he and a beautiful young woman are suddenly (and fatally) ambushed by Parisian police not far from Mesrine's place of birth. Richet then flashes back to the Franco-Algerian War of the late '50s and a brutal interrogation undergone by Mesrine. Following a military discharge, Mesrine returns to his parents' suburb of Clichy, where his dad has arranged a pathetic job for him in a lace-making factory. Never one to take humiliation lying down, Jacques perceives burglary, larceny, and racketeering as much-superior options and decides to pursue a life of crime via a "business partnership" with childhood buddy Paul (Gilles Lellouche), who works for mobster Guido (Gérard Depardieu).

As the years pass, Jacques works his way up through the ranks of the underworld; via Paul, he also meets and falls hard for two women: Pigalle streetwalker Sarah (Florence Thomassin), and Sofia (Elena Anaya), a beautiful Spanish woman with whom he cohabitates after doing time in a French prison. Following a brief and unsuccessful attempt to "go straight," Jacques reconnects with Guido, then finds it necessary to escape from France to Canada with his new mistress, Jeanne (Cécile De France). Unfortunately, another prison sentence is waiting for him there, replete with brutal solitary confinement, but the possibility of a daring escape beckons. The second half of the Mesrine saga, entitled Mesrine: L'Énnemi Public No. 1 for French release, followed immediately after and picks up where this installment wraps. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

A malevolent supernatural force besets a dilapidated children's hospital on the Isle of Man, terrifying the young patients and breaking their bones in this supernatural thriller from Spanish horror specialist Jaume Balagueró (The Nameless, [REC]). Mercy Falls Hospital has been in operation for nearly a hundred years, but now the authorities have declared it unfit for human inhabitation. As a result, the time has come for the hospital to close. But just as the helicopters arrive to transport the children to a new facility, bad weather forces them to remain grounded. Later, as Nurse Amy (Calista Flockhart) tends to her young charges, the children's bones begin to fracture for no apparent reason. Though the doctors remain baffled by the inexplicable injuries, the children sense something that the grown-ups do not. Somewhere in these crumbling corridors lurks a force of darkness consumed by pain, and filled with hatred. The children have dubbed it "The Mechanical Girl," and they claim to have stolen glimpses of it sobbing in the shadows. In order to banish the spirit and save the children, one brave soul will have to summon the courage to face a force powerful enough to cause physical damage, yet so fragile it might be completely destroyed by the slightest touch. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

The greatest monster hunter of them all has his work cut out for him as he tracks down three deadly foes in this action-adventure saga. Gabriel Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) is a man who has dedicated his life to battling evil forces who exist outside the bounds of nature; Van Helsing's work has not always made him friends, and a false accusation of murder still trails him. But when he's summoned to Transylvania at the behest of Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale), whose family has been fighting supernatural beings for generations, Van Helsing wastes no time answering her call. There, Van Helsing discovers that the undying vampire Count Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) has put a misshapen creature named Igor (Kevin J. O'Connor) under his spell, and, in turn, has forged an alliance with a hideous monster (Shuler Hensley) who was created by the misguided Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Samuel West). Adding to Anna's burden is her brother, Velkan (Will Kemp), a lycanthrope who becomes a bloodthirsty wolf under the light of the full moon. Van Helsing also co-stars Elena Anaya, Silvia Colloca, and Josie Maran as Dracula's vampire brides. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Spanish filmmaker Miguel Albaladejo writes and directs the drama Rencor, marking the film debut of Spanish pop star Lolita. The bold singer Chelo (Lolita) goes to a resort for the summer and ends up running into her ex-boyfriend Toni (Jorge Perugorria), a former criminal involved in a new relationship with Esther (Elena Anaya). In order to get revenge on Toni, Chelo enlists the help of teacher Natalia (Mar Regueras), who has a young son that Toni fathered during a one-night stand and refuses to take responsibility for. Meanwhile, Esther's brother Marcos (Roberto Hernandez) starts up a relationship with Chelo. For her leading role, Lolita won a Goya award for Best New Actress in 2003. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Two of Spain's biggest female stars headline this offbeat comedy about the battle of wills between good and evil. Heaven is not getting its fair share of business for the afterlife, so Lola (Victoria Abril), an angel who sings in a nightclub located beyond the pearly gates, is sent to Earth to drum up business by her boss, Marina (Fanny Ardant). Her first prospect is Manny (Demián Bichir), a prizefighter with an injury that could take his life at any time. As Lola tries to claim Manny's soul for the Lord, the wicked Jack Davenport (Gael García Bernal) believes that the Devil deserves the boxer's soul, and he sends one of Hell's waitresses, Carmen (Penélope Cruz), to seal the deal. On Earth, Lola takes the form of Manny's former love and urges him to mend fences with his mother, while seductive Carmen tries to persuade Manny to return to the ring, knowing that another fight would mean his death. While Lola and Carmen wage war over Manny's soul, they maintain their cover by working at a grocery store, where they both learn a few lessons about the pitfalls of earthly capitalism. Meanwhile, Manny is dealing with financial problems of his own -- he owes money to the city's corrupt police commissioner (Emilio Gutiérrez Caba), who is using his strong-arm men to "persuade" Manny to pay up. Released in Europe as Sin Noticias de Dios (which translates as No News From God), Don't Tempt Me was a box-office success in Spain when it was released in late 2001, though it wouldn't reach American theaters until 2003. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A man on the run from outlaws finds himself consoling a troubled priest in this broad comedy. Rufus (Javier Manrique) is deep in debt to a Cuban gangster named Ortega (Idefonso Tamayo), who has an uncertain temper and is tired of waiting to be repaid. Rufus decides that it's time to dip into his hidden reserve of money that he's hidden in a tree in the desert, so heads to Almeria to get it. However, when he arrives, Rufus discovers that his tree already has a visitor -- a depressed priest (Alfredo Landa) who is convinced that his wicked life has left him beyond redemption. The cleric is intent upon committing suicide by hanging himself from the tree, while Rufus has to persuade him that life is worth living at least long enough to get his money. El Arbol del Penitente was the first feature film from director Jose Maria Borell. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

A man tries to reconcile with his past before it disappears in the allegorical drama Las Huellas Borradas. Manuel (Federico Luppi) is a writer who journeys from Argentina, where he lives, to the Spanish village where he was born; word has reached him that the town will soon literally vanish, as the area is being turned into a giant reservoir. Manuel hopes to tie up some loose ends from his past, and hopes to rekindle his relationship with Virginia (Mercedes Sampietro), whom he loved as a young man. With the village's days numbered, many long-dormant rivalries have been brought back to life, as a number of people hope to settle old scores before progress eliminates their home town. Virginia also has to deal with her daughter Rosa (Elena Anaya) and her sudden rebellious streak -- she's now pregnant, and has decided to move in with her boyfriend Delfin (Sergi Calleja). Meanwhile, Manuel spends some time with his old friend Don Jose (Hector Alterio), with whom he discusses philosophy and the secrets of a town that will soon cease to exist. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Brothers Berto (Nancho Novo) and Mario (Enrique Alcides) grew up on Spain's Galician coast where their hippie parents settled during the '60s. Before they were grown, their father abandoned them, a trauma from which Mario has not completely recovered. Berto leaves home first, and many years pass before the brothers meet again. This sophomore feature from Galician director Xavier Villaverde recounts the brothers' reunion and search for their missing father. By the time they meet again, both siblings have accumulated troubled pasts. Mario has just finished jail time for protesting military service, while Berto has been involved in various criminal activities. Berto shows up to meet Mario with his latest lover, a very young Laura (Elena Anaya). It is not long before Mario joins them in a threesome. Later, Berto tells him that he has spent three years with their father (Cheto Lara); he then coerces Mario and Laura into accompanying him to Lisbon, Portugal where he claims their father now resides. This may or may not be a ruse to help Berto flee the country. As their journey progresses, painful truths about their pasts and childhood manifest themselves. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi