Loles Leon Movies
- 2009
This zany, Spanish-language teen sex comedy concerns a group of young social outcasts and misfits, including a blind boy, a wheelchair-confined metalhead and a shy, backward type who decide to "crash" Oxford University in England to win over a gorgeous girl. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mario Casas, Alberto Amarilla, (more)
Directed by J.J. Bigas Luna, Son De Mar (Sound of the Sea) follows Ulises, a young man who moved to a small coastal city just as summer was coming to an end. Though he arrived in order to teach literature at a local academic institution, he finds himself with much more than he had bargained for, including a newfound appreciation for the smells, sounds, tastes, and women of the Mediterranean. Eventually, he falls in love with Martina, one of his students. Enchanted by his stories and historical know-how, Martina returns his feelings, and is crushed when he mysteriously disappears. The film features Jordi Mollà, Leonor Watling, and Eduard Fernández. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jordi Mollà, Leonor Watling, (more)
Two struggling filmmakers land a big star for their next production the hard way in this dark comedy. Benito (Santiago Segura) wants to direct movies, and his friend Carolo (Pablo Carbonell) is a would-be actor who dreams of starring in Benito's productions, but their careers in show business are going nowhere fast. Benito has an idea for a new film, A World For Us, and is convinced Carolo would be perfect for the male lead -- and that screen siren Amanda Castro (Ariadna Gil) is just the actress to play his love interest. But Benito can't afford Amanda's salary for participating in his Super-8 project, so he and Carolo sneak into her dressing room in hopes of shooting some footage of her on the sly that they can use. But things don't go as they hoped, and Benito and Carolo end up kidnapping Amanda, who becomes the unwilling star of their newly expanding film, with the actress "playing" many of her scenes while handcuffed to a wheelchair. The plot line for Obra Maestra bears a certain similarity to the John Waters film Cecil B. Demented, which was released earlier the same year -- so much so that Waters considered legal action against the producers. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ariadna Gil, Santiago Segura, (more)
Post-Franco filmmaker Fernando Trueba's first Spanish-based feature since 1993's Oscar-winning Belle Epoque, La Nina de Tus Ojos begins in 1938, when Spain is torn by Civil War. As a sign of cordiality between General Franco and Adolph Hitler, a Spanish film crew is invited to Nazi Germany's UFA Studios in Berlin to make two versions of a popular Andalusian musical. The cast includes sexy, golden-hearted Macarena (Penélope Cruz), director Blas Fontiveros (Antonio Resines), leading man Julian Torralba (Jorge Sanz), art director Castillo (Santiago Segura) and alcoholic Rosa Rosales (Rosa Maria Sarda). On arrival, they gape at the resplendent shooting facilities, thankful to escape the misery of their war-torn country. However, it is not long before they realize what they have got themselves into, particularly when Nazi propaganda minister Josef Goebbels (Johannes Silberschneider) falls for the Latina charms of Macarena. German actress of Fassbinder fame Hanna Schygulla makes a cameo appearance as the wizened wife of the lustful propaganda minister. La Nina de Tus Ojos competed in the 49th Berlin International Film Festival in 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, Rovi
- Starring:
- Penélope Cruz, Antonio Resines, (more)
Writer-directors Felix Sabroso and Dunia Ayaso made this Spanish comedy-drama with an "inside television" angle. TV host Miranda Vega (Maria Conchita Alonso) heads a variety talk-show format. Confronted with plummeting ratings, she is forced to try a different approach that brings singing hookers, drug addicts, and other no-talents into the studio. Miranda feuds with lesbian actress Marta Pena (Loles Leon), prompting Marta's companion Soraya (Malena Gustierrez), a "karate artiste," to participate in the variety show. Chaos reigns when the show goes on the air live. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Maria Conchita Alonso, Loles Leon, (more)
This comedy, set in Madrid, follows single nursery school teacher Esperanza (Loles Leon) on her quest for a man. She shares her problems with her gay friend Ramon (Andrea Occhipinti), a divorce lawyer, who devises a few matchmaking notions -- while Esperanza, at the same time, tries to get physical-education instructor Roberto (Armando del Rio) to take an interest in Ramon. But Esperanza continues to find heterosexual men in short supply. Shown at the 1997 San Sebastian Film Festival, the English title is Manly Love. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Loles Leon, Andrea Occhipinti, (more)
- 1996
This offbeat Spanish romance provides a fascinating look into modern gypsy life as it tells the off-beat tale of a romance between a confused payo (a non-gypsy man) looking for a gypsy soul and a real gypsy woman trying to find a happy medium between patriarchal cultural traditions and modern realities. Handsome womanizing waiter Antonio who entertains tourists by performing gypsy dances. Deeply traumatized in boyhood when he watched his parents die in a car wreck, he has grown up confused and aimless. His only real desire is to find the aforementioned soul. Lucia is the gypsy lass who falls in love Antonio. Her father, who owns the antique store in which she works, is outraged by the affair, but despite his protestations, the lovers struggle to stay together and to make others understand that their passion is real. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Pedro Alonso, Amara Carmona, (more)
This big-budget Spanish drama pays tribute to the courageous women who sacrificed their lives during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Maria's peaceful life as a nun is shattered when revolutionary anarchists force her and her sisters to flee their convent sanctuary. Maria ends up hiding in a brothel where she meets the good-hearted whore Charo. Their peace is in turn destroyed by the sudden arrival of Pilar, a passionate, idealistic member of the Free Women organization. Her fiery speeches and strong arm tactics compel the hookers and Maria to join their fight. A handsome ex-priest also joins them as they fight with the anarchists in Zaragoza. Following a small victory, the formerly trench-bound, battle-weary women celebrate, but then Maria finds herself faced with the destruction and death that goes with war. Later the former priest informs the women that they will not be allowed to fight upon the front lines and the women are left with broken ideals and angry hearts that lead them into one last, violent battle. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1993
Juan (Imanol Arias) speaks Catalan and Spanish. He was active in political protests under the Franco regime. He is an astonishingly bad accordian player, and an acceptable ventriloquist, which enables him to scratch a living from the streets as an itinerant musician/entertainer. A long time ago, he met an aristocratic young woman (Ornella Muti) at a sit-in at an art gallery and married her. She has long since divorced him, but he still yearns for her. Juan was injured in a random terrorist incident, and now affects costumes that evoke the Phantom of the Opera and other famous mutilated men. He has minor encounters with women, but he is still seeking some way to come back into his former wife's life again. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ornella Muti, Imanol Arias, (more)
- 1990
- NC17
"I'll never love you . . . ever!" the sexy and attractive Marina (Victoria Abril) states emphatically to the love-struck Ricky (Antonio Banderas). You know she means what she says because when she makes this statement she is handcuffed and lashed to a bed, not exactly the proper way to warm anyone up for romance. Yet in Pedro Almodovar's Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! the way to a woman's heart is depicted as being held in captivity until the Stockholm Syndrome kicks in. The film concerns the plight of Marina, a "B"-movie diva trying to adjust to her recent success after years of porno films and drug addiction. But then into her life comes Ricky, a part-time handyman and full-time mental patient, who, during one of his past escapes from the mental ward, had spent the night with Marina -- who gave in to him during one of her less-discerning moments. Since then, Ricky has been thinking of her constantly. Determined to win her affections, he kidnaps Marina, holding her captive in her own apartment and trying everything to convince her to love him -- then they could marry and have a big family. All Ricky's attempts to woo Marina fail. Finally, after taking a severe beating from some street thugs, he strikes a chord in Marina's nurturing heart so that when her sister Lola (Loles Leon) finally discovers her plight, Marina no longer wants to be rescued. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Starring:
- Victoria Abril, Antonio Banderas, (more)
- 1990
The extremely well-loved Flamenco singer Isabel Pantoja makes her screen debut in this feature. Since most of the film consists of her singing, fans of her voice and music will be pleased at this opportunity to see her. In the story, an attractively heavy woman is arriving at a movie theater to the accompaniment of much fanfare. She is a movie star whose film is being premiered. She is accompanied by an extremely thin man -- one of her co-stars. In the film which is then shown, the star plays a singer who is being courted by two men who wish to bask in her abundance. Meanwhile, back at the theater, the leading man has sneaked away to play poker. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jose Coronado, Juan Echanove, (more)
- 1990
According to Spanish legend, every All Souls Eve, the ghost of the legendary lover Don Juan Tenorio rises up from purgatory to walk the earth in hopes of doing the single good deed necessary for him to be freed from limbo. Unfortunately, though Don Juan has risen 450 times since his death, he has yet to succeed. This erotic Spanish comedy begins on the last day in October in 1990 and chronicles the great lover's latest try. Though times keep changing, Don Juan's distinctive garb does not and he seems out of place on the streets of modern Seville. Luckily, he stumbles across a local production of the play Don Juan. The temperamental actor happens to look just like the real Don Juan and a mix-up leads to the real McCoy playing himself on stage. The other cast members are puzzled at the sudden change in the lead actor from arrogant, egotistical cad to amiable charmer. He goes on to give a stunning performance. Meanwhile, the actor gets his own comeuppance at the hands of a beautiful robber. Things really get to hopping later in the evening at the cast party when both the actor and the real Don are there at the same time. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Juan Luis Galiardo, Maria Barranco, (more)
