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Leira Ucha Movies

2009  
 
A lonely man finds a friend who leads him to a revelation about himself in this drama from Spanish filmmaker Roberto Caston. Ander (Joxean Bengoetxea) is a farmer edging into middle age who lives with sister Arantxa (Leire Ucha) and their aging mother in a small Basque village. While Ander works part time at a bicycle factory, the farm is his life; he has few friends and will have even fewer companions after Arantxa's upcoming wedding. One day Ander breaks his leg and is told by his doctor that he'll have to wear a cast for the next two months. Though Ander insists he can still do his work and look after his mother, Arantxa won't hear of it and hires a Peruvian handyman, Jose (Christian Esquivel), to assist him. Ander and Jose quickly become close friends, and are invited to a bachelor party thrown for Arantxa's fiancée. Reme (Mamen Rivera), a prostitute from Galicia, is hired to be part of the entertainment, and Jose becomes infatuated with her. Reme is drawn to the sincere affection Jose offers her, and the two become lovers. However, as Jose spends more time with Reme, Ander resents not being able to spend as much time with him, and he comes to realize his feelings for Jose go beyond the usual boundaries of friendship. Ander was an official selection at the 2009 Berlin International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Josean BengoetxeaCristhian Esquivel, (more)
 
2008  
 
The realities of terrorism in Spain provide the backdrop for this political thriller from writer and director Manuel Gutierrez Aragon. Xabier (Jose Coronado) is a well-respected university professor who is a member of an exclusive Basque dining club. The club is home to a number of Basque nationalists who believe the use of terror against the Spanish government is appropriate and justified; Xabier does not share these views, and speaking out against terrorist violence at their gatherings has earned him several enemies. While Xabier believes the members of his club defend terrorism as theory rather than practice, he discovers that's not the case when one of the loyalists threatens his life and unknown invaders ransack his apartment. Meanwhile, Xabier's girlfriend is Francesca (Vanessa Incontrada), who works as a clinical psychologist in a Spanish prison hospital. One of Francesca's newest patients is Josu Jon (Oscar Jaenada), a Basque terrorist who suffered a head injury when he wrecked his car while being chased by police. Josu Jon has lost much of his memory, and as Francesca helps him piece his life back together, he finds he can no longer support the cause for which he was once willing to die. But Olatz (Leire Ucha), leader of the terrorist cell Josu Jon worked with, is not about to let one of his soldiers walk away without a fight. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Starring:
Óscar JaenadaJose Coronado, (more)