Carlos Lucena Movies
- 1989
Pedro Jarrapellejos (Antonio Ferrandis) is a ladies man who cannot turn the heads of Isabel (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) or her beautiful daughter. When both peasant women are found raped and murdered in a brutal scene, a schoolteacher is falsely accused. Pedro knows his own nephew and his friend participated in the killings, but he uses his considerable influence over the police and courts to intimidate the witnesses into silence. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Antonio Ferrandis, Juan Diego, (more)
- 1988
Laura (Angela Molina) is caught in a love triangle with her husband Tomas (Juan Diego) and his half-brother Adrian (Sergi Mateu) in this routine melodrama. When Tomas ignores her, Laura finds love in the arms of a local textile manufacturer, only to discover later that the man is her husband's half-brother. Tomas learns of the infidelity and seeks vengeance against Laura and Adrian. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ángela Molina, Juan Diego, (more)
- 1987
Ona (Ovidi Montllor) is a young woman who has a love affair with the guitar player Manolo in this romantic drama. Despite having a ticket on a departing steamer, he elects to stay in Barcelona with the woman he loves. The two share a memorable day with each other and pledge their mutual love in contrast to their friends who casually engage in sex and use drugs. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alfredo Luchetti, Ovidi Montllor, (more)
- 1986
Four protagonists carry the action in this adventure story about betrayal, the high seas, and illegal shipping. Patxi (Alfredo Landa) is a widowed sea captain who becomes friends with Esteban, a ship's machinist (Imanol Arias), and the two end up going to Africa where they get in trouble and land in jail. Patxi's daughter Begona (Virginia Mataix) is being romantically pursued by the corrupt owner of a shipping line who is trading in illegal arms (Carlos Lucena). Ignoring her erstwhile suitor, she flies off to get her father and Esteban out of their predicament. But tragedy has already struck: Patxi is dead, and Esteban and Begona go back home where they seek justice. Much of Bandera Negra was shot in the Basque area of Spain, and the film was sponsored by the Basque regional government. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alfredo Landa, Imanol Arias, (more)
In this offbeat crime film, Willie Parker (Terence Stamp) an English mobster turned informant, has been given a new identity and has been living in a small, isolated village in Spain for 10 years. Unfortunately for Parker, the men he has betrayed have ascertained his whereabouts and send Braddock (John Hurt), a professional hitman, and his apprentice Myron (Tim Roth) to bring Parker to Paris where his ex-associates await. After kidnapping Parker, nothing goes as planned. Now they are followed by a Spanish policeman (Fernando Rey) who seems to anticipate each of their moves, and they are burdened by Maggie (Laura del Sol), the mistress of a fellow mobster they were forced to kill. What should have been a routine hit becomes a psychological battle between all the participants as Parker, in a fight for time and for his life, plays one against the other. Set against the bleak Spanish landscape and featuring evocative and memorable theme music, the film builds to a surprising conclusion where the true nature of all the characters is revealed. Terence Stamp develops the character of Parker in a subtle but surprisingly comic performance and Laura del Sol shines as a woman who will do what is necessary to survive. Tim Roth, in his film debut, plays a brutal, but oddly endearing thug. But it is John Hurt, in a sensitive and nuanced performance, who brings a perceptive intelligence and depth to his role which adds a philosophical and psychological dimension to the film. Hurt plays his difficult role without a misstep and with a rare economy of action. Thoughtful and frequently amusing, The Hit, superbly written by Peter Prince, is both a compelling and suspenseful crime drama and also a deep and profound meditation on life, death and courage. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- 1981
As cryptic as the title itself, Cripta is about an inmate in a mental hospital who is released to help solve the mystery of a girl who has been missing for six years. After many forays into the darker side of Barcelona, he accomplishes his task and then goes back to the mental hospital. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- José M. Sacristán, Rafaela Aparicio, (more)
- 1980
- R
In his final film before taking his own life, Patrick Dewaere stars as Serge, a writer whose life is disrupted by an affair with the enigmatic Carol (Clio Goldsmith). ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Dewaere, Clio Goldsmith, (more)
- 1980
The slow mental and emotional disintegration of the mother of an autistic child is the main theme of this evocative psychological drama by J.A. Salgot. Since incest and murder are also involved, this is not exactly a film for all audiences. Clara (Victoria Abril) is graphically shown giving birth and subsequently followed as she tries to cope with the ever-more obvious autism of her new son. She leads a normal life as a keypunch operator, but her son's affliction takes its toll. She experiments with illegal drugs, eventually loses her job, and slowly recedes into a shell that is almost as impenetrable as her son's. There seems to be no ordinary way out of her gradual decline, no solution to her problem that started long ago when she refused to give her son up to an institution. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victoria Abril
- 1979
The last president of Catalonia, Lluis Companys i Jover, escaped to France after the Spanish Civil War, but was returned to Spain by the Vichy (collaborationist) government in 1940. He was later tried and executed, presumably for treason. This Catalan and Spanish-language movie follows his story from the fall of Barcelona to Franco's troops, to the time of Companys' capture and imprisonment. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1979
40 Years Without Sex, this non-narrative, skit-based satirical film's title in English, refers to the rather extreme moralism of the Franco era (1939-1976) in Spain during which, at least as far as public notice of it went, there was "no sex." In one episode, boys masturbate under the sheets while away at camp. In another, a woman is raped by a German sheep dog. In yet another, a particularly outspoken Falangist has a son who is unmistakably homosexual. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carlos Lucena
- 1977
La Redada, a low-budget Spanish language thriller also released as Barcelona Kill, is the story of a female journalist and her boyfriend who inadvertently get involved with murder and mayhem and must run for their lives pursued by the Barcelona Mob. Directed by Jose Antonio de la Loma, La Redada is a typical crime mystery with little new to offer. However, it has its moments, and the cast members, while unknown in the United States, give uniformly good performances. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
