Antonio Resines Movies

Based on a 1943 book of the same title by Camilo José Cela, Colmena features the comings and goings of a wide variety of characters, all trying to survive in a poverty-stricken Madrid during World War II. Rather than feature any single story line, these people from all walks of life cross paths almost randomly as they come to a café to sip their one cup of coffee and work on a book, or pick up a prostitute, or get their shoes shined, or play billiards, or just warm themselves on a cold winter's day. This primary setting is complemented by a brothel where a dirt-poor journalist sleeps if there is a room available that night, while during the day he tries to make ends meet one way or another. The demeanor of the people in the café or in the brothel effectively conveys the atmosphere of a long-lost era that may have had hardships but also brought a subtle sense of camaraderie to very disparate human beings. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Paco (Antonio Resines) is an architect and artist of sorts, and although he is married he has affairs that cut a wide swath through the professions: a medical student, a reporter, an actress, a teacher, and others -- and in no case is Paco at a loss for words. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Directed by Fernando (Belle Epoque) Trueba, the Spanish/ French Opera Prima stars Oscar Ladiore as a young divorced employee at a news agency. Outside the subway one evening, Ladione chances to meet his beautiful cousin, played by Paula Molina (sister of actress Angela Molina). The two commence an affair, then drift apart. Molina, an aspiring musician, falls under the spell of her pretentious tutor. On the verge of leaving the country with her teacher, she is "rescued" at the airport by Ladiore. The title's significance can be explained by its literal translation, "First Effort" (it is the first romance for Ladione after his marital breakup), and by the fact that "Opera" and "Prima" are slang terms for "Subway" and "Cousin," respectively. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi