Mariela Besuievsky Movies
- 2009
A man uncovers some long-held secrets when he investigates a murder long thought to be a closed case in this drama from filmmaker Juan Jose Campanella. In the 1970s, Argentina has fallen under the control of a military junta and a fair trial is becoming an increasingly uncommon event in that nation's courts. When a woman is found raped and murdered while her husband is at work, two traveling laborers confess to the crime, but only after suffering a severe beating at the hands of police. Decades later, Benjamin (Ricardo Darin), who has recently retired from the court, decides to write a book about the case, based on his belief that the two men were wrongly convicted. While his close friend Irene (Soledad Villamil), a judge, is wary of Benjamin's plans, a fellow court employee, Sandoval (Guillermo Francella), is eager to help him. A photograph alerts Benjamin to the possibility that Gomez (Javier Godino) may have been the real culprit, but after thirty years finding Gomez and finding conclusive evidence against him is no simple task. And as Irene eventually becomes part of the investigation, Benjamin has to come to terms with his unspoken love for her. El Secreto De Sus Ojos (aka The Secret In Their Eyes) received its North American premiere at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2009
What actions should take when one witnesses one's most trusted mentor and advisor committing uxoricide? That is the plight that befalls Vicente (Tristan Ulloa); a lower-level professor at a Law School in Spain, he not only regards senior professor Fernando (Emilio Gutierrez Aragon) as his closest friend and colleague, but relies on Fernando for counsel and direction, as a father figure and an emotional anchor. That begins to change rather rapidly when Vicente catches Fernando brutally murdering his beloved wife. Vincente cannot quite force himself to turn Fernando in, but even after Fernando offers a convincing explanation, Vincente can neither forgive Fernando nor drive the images out of his mind. Instead of running to the police, Vincente remains silent (which makes him an accomplice), yet tells Fernando to permanently stay out of his life. Then additional bodies begin to pile up. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tristan Ulloa, Emilio Gutierrez Aragon, (more)
- 2008
A young Argentine mathematician visiting the United Kingdom is drawn into a complex murder mystery when his landlady is brutally slain in director Alex de la Iglesia's tense and stylish thriller. John Hurt stars in a film scripted by longtime de la Iglesia collaborator Jorge Guerricaechevarría. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elijah Wood, John Hurt, (more)
- 2008
Two young people learn about love as politics turn their world upside down in this drama from director Ana Diez. After a long and successful career as a soccer player, Xavi (Nicolas Pauls) retires from the game and moves to Spain, where one day to his surprise he happens upon Rosana (Maria Botto), a friend from his childhood in Uruguay. As Xavi and Rosana catch up on what has happened to them over the past thirty years, they flash back to 1973, when young Xavi (Pablo Arnoletti) and his father Manuel (Emilio Gutierrez Caba), a shoemaker, lived down the street from Rosana (Pia Rodriguez). Rosana's father Severgnini (Mauricio Davub) was the local chief of police, and found himself frequently dealing with military authorities as Marxist rebels began plotting an overthrow of Uruguay's leadership. While Manuel is largely apolitical, he has friends who are fighting with the rebels, and when he's warned of an upcoming action at a soccer match, he packs Xavi off to a cabin in the country, and as word is leaked to Severgnini, he sends Rosana off with him. The two youngsters soon find themselves caught in the web of first love, but as a coup throws all of Uruguay into chaos, the simplicity of their stay in the country proves short lived. Paisito (aka Small Country) was an official selection at the 2008 Malaga Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mauricio Dayub, Emilio Gutiérrez Caba, (more)
- 2008
Cuban filmmaker Juan Carlos Tabío uses laughter to explore the socio-economic difficulties facing his homeland in this comedy concerning the chaos that unfolds when word spreads that the Castiñeiras family is set to receive a sizable inheritance. When Yamaguey resident Bernardito (Jorge Perugorría) first receives word that the Castiñeiras family is about to receive a large inheritance, he's understandably skeptical at first. Upon checking the internet and discovering that news outlets across the globe are reporting the bizarre development, however, his hopes finally begin to rise. It appears that a group of 18th Century Castiñeiras nuns had quietly deposited a large treasure in a British bank, and that the already substantial sum has been acquiring interest ever since. The authorities estimate that each family is set to receive millions, an announcement that has Castiñeiras all across Cuba lining up to prove their eligibility. But considering the fact that there are two separate Castiñeiras bloodlines, which one is entitled to receive the inheritance? In the case of Miguelón, a somewhat slow villager who has had his eye on town beauty Yurima since childhood, the announcement that he is now filthy rich could prove pivotal in helping him get the girl he's always pined after. Later, after the two become engaged and embark on a lavish spending spree, a new development sends the situation spinning in a wholly unanticipated direction. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jorge Perugorría, Annia Bu, (more)
- 2007
- NR
A successful young doctor with a beautiful wife, a happy child, and a comfortable house finds his life suddenly changed in ways he never thought possible after being injured in a serious car accident. To the outside eye Lazar Perkov (Boris Nacev) has everything -- indeed his friends and colleagues have even gone so far as to christen him with the nickname "Lucky." But appearances can sometimes be deceptive, and despite having all the creature comforts, Lazar is constantly trying to live up to the demands of his overbearing mother and discontented spouse. Every day seems to be pretty much the same for the man they call Lucky, until one day when Lazar barely survives a devastating automobile accident. Upon recovering from his life-threatening injuries, Lazar is confronted by a series of people who appear to die time and again, and always deliver the cryptic message "Return what is not yours. Have respect." Experiencing such visions in dreamland is one thing, but when they begin to invade his waking life, Lazar quickly draws the conclusion that these apparitions are simply lost souls who have yet to find peace in the afterlife. When the specter of an old woman begins speaking in a dialect Lazar can't recognize, the frightened accident survivor seeks out the aid of a linguistics professor in deciphering her message. Despite the fact that the professor always seems to be away at a conference, his wife is more than willing to help. Soon, she and Lazar have entered into a bizarre relationship. Unfortunately for Lazar, the situation only grows more haunting, and as the people around him begin to appear and disappear at random, and his wife appears indifferent to her husband's fate as she departs for a seaside vacation with her lover and child. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Boris Nacev, Vesna Stanojevska, (more)
- 2006
In a time of crisis, a young boy tries to make sense of the fine line between fantasy and reality in this drama from Spain. Nicolas (Ricardo Darin) is a toy designer who has married Ingrid (Irene Jacob), a scientist studying birds who has been raising her son Raul (Victor Valdivia) on her own since her husband was killed while serving in Iraq. Nicolas and Raul develop a close bond, and when the boy asks his new step-father about why his dad died, he tells the youngster stories about the fairies that be believed guided the world when he was a boy. Nicolas also shows Raul the shack he built in the woods where he used to go when he was troubled as a kid. While Nicolas's relationship with Ingrid falls apart, he remains close to Raul. One night, Nicolas befriends Sezar (Bebe), a clerk at a grocery store who is beaten when her unscrupulous boss is attacked by a gang of toughs while driving her home. With nowhere else for her to stay, Nicolas takes Sezar back to his shack so she can get a good night's sleep and clear her mind after the trauma. However, when Raul happens by the shack the next morning, he doesn't know what to make of its new occupant until he decides Sezar is one of the fairies Nicolas once believed in. La Educacion de las Hadas (aka The Education of Fairies) was adapted from the popular novel by Didier Van Cauwelaert). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Darín, Irène Jacob, (more)
- 2006
A group of friends who are all approaching middle age gather daily at a the Garllington Pub in Buenos Aires to drink their daily coffee and discuss the topics of the day when a sudden tragedy suddenly snaps them back to reality. While the owner of the bar has explicitly banned the topics of politics and soccer in order to prevent tension between combative friends Sergio and Marco, there never seems to be a shortage of topics to turn to in substitution. While most of conversations eventually end up being about women, the appearance of Tango singer Valeria one day brings the topic of relationships in general to the forefront. All of these friends are single, and realize that if they are going to find a mate they better do so soon. When finance worker Sebastian suffers a serious emotional breakdown, the generally jovial atmosphere of the bar turns quickly somber. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Daniel Kuzniecka, Adrian Navarro, (more)
- 2006
A sullen doctor who is teetering on the cusp of middle-age is forced to revisit his painful family past in director Gerardo Herrero's adaptation of Almudena Grandes' best-selling novel. As children, Juan and Charo (Natalia Sanchez) were sweethearts until Charo was swept away by the charms of Juan's older brother Dami. Though Dami and Charo eventually marry, their union was simply not meant to be. Soon after the unhappy wife comes seeking solace in the arms of her husband's brother, tragedy strikes and Charo is killed in a deadly car accident. Years later, Juan is a forty-year old doctor who has relocated his family from Madrid to the village of Cádiz on Spain's Atlantic coast. In addition to caring for he and Dami's mentally handicapped younger brother Alfonso (Andres Gertrudix), Juan also acts as guardian to his young niece Tamara. When a relationship begins to develop between Juan and his Andalusian maid Maribel (Cuca Escribano), Juan's troubled past soon begins to work its way to the surface of things despite his best efforts to keep it under lock and key. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- José Luis García Pérez, Cuca Escribano, (more)
A lonely taxidermist with a photographic memory dreams of committing the "perfect crime" in Nine Queens director Fabián Bielinsky's deliberately paced existential thriller. Espinosa (Ricardo Darín) is an epileptic fortysomething who makes his living by stuffing creatures for the natural history museum in Buenos Aires. It is there that Espinosa meets friend and fellow taxidermist Sontag (Alejandro Awada). After picking up their paycheck at a nearby bank, Sontag kindly invites the lonely Espinosa to join him in the forests of southern Argentina for a brief hunting getaway. Soon after checking into their hotel, Sontag and Espinosa take to nature in hopes of bagging a buck, but their voyage takes a dark turn when, in the grip of another seizure, Espinosa accidentally shoots and kills hotel owner Dietrich (Manuel Rodal). Though his suspicions that Dietrich was involved with some shady dealings seem little more than a means for justifying the tragic turn of events, Espinosa soon realizes that he may be onto something when a pair of thugs named Sosa (Pablo Cedron) and Montero (Walter Reyno) come searching for the missing proprietor. As all of the elements quickly fall into place, it begins to appear as if Espinosa may finally be prepared to execute the crime he has always dreamt about. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi, (more)
- 2005
Two sisters separated for the duration of the Argentine dictatorship spanning from 1976 to 1983 reconnect to confront the tragedy of their past in director Julia Solomonoff's reflective drama. It was 1975 when Natalia Levin's (Ingrid Rubio) militant boyfriend Martin (Nicolás Pauls) disappeared from Buenos Aires without a trace. Natalia was also separated from her sister Elena (Valeria Bertuccelli) that same year, but the two are once again drawn together when -- after the dictatorship crumbles -- Natalia travels to Austin, TX, to visit her sister and inquire about an unpublished novel written by her late father. Discovering that the novel is a fact-based account of their family's struggle during the dictatorship, Natalia and her sister are forced to confront the painful memories of the past before they can begin the healing process that will free them of the lingering guilt that accompanies their survival. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Valeria Bertuccelli, Ingrid Rubio, (more)
An expectant, ultra-modern mother living in 1913 Barcelona is thrust into a complex and labyrinthine mystery when her psychiatrist husband goes missing and she is forced to seek the help of her conservative brother-in-law in locating her missing spouse in director Joaquin Oristrell's Freudian period comedy. Alma is a modern woman of very modern means; her father Spain's foremost neurosurgeon and her husband, Leon, a devoted follower of controversial Austrian psychiatrist Sigmund Freud. After arriving home one summer afternoon to find her tearful husband mumbling incoherent words of woe, Alma's life is turned upside down when Leon suddenly disappears. With no one else to turn to than her lovelorn brother-in-law Salvador -- likewise a psychiatrist who secretly pines for Alma despite being married to her sister -- Alma's discovery of a strange manuscript on hysteria and female sexuality proves the launching point for a tireless quest to locate her missing husband and discover the true meaning behind his inexplicable disappearance. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leonor Watling, Luis Tosar, (more)
Eric Rohmer, the globally-celebrated auteur behind Claire's Knee and Ma nuit chez Maud, helms Triple Agent, a riveting political drama set in 1930s France. The story is based on the historical account of Fyodor erge Renko, a Russian expatriate general filling the triple role of practicing espionage for the Marxists, Soviets, and Communists, and concurrently deceiving his wife Arsinoé (Katerina Didaskalou). Fyodor's life ultimately becomes entwined in the throes of deception and his life begins to unravel. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Katerina Didaskalou, Serge Renko, (more)
A mismatched couple discovers that whatever can go wrong will go wrong during a family visit in this comedy. Leni (Marian Aguilera) is a television reporter from a Jewish family in Spain. One weekend, Leni drops by her family's home for a visit, with her new boyfriend, college professor Rafi (Guillermo Toledo), in tow. Rafi is more than a bit nervous about meeting Leni's family -- chronically nervous mother Gloria (Norma Aleandro), blustery father Ernesto (Mario Martin), dance-student sister Tania (María Botto), straight-laced bother David (Fernando Ramallo), and addled grandfather Dudu (Max Berliner). But Leni quickly makes matters worse when she announces to her family, who are waiting for Ernesto to return from work, that Rafi just happens to be Palestinian. Matters become a bit tense after that, and while joking with Leni with a block of frozen soup in the kitchen, Rafi accidentally drops the package out the window -- hitting a man on the head who might be Ernesto. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Norma Aleandro, Guillermo Toledo, (more)
Gerardo Herrero's political drama El Misterio Galíndez (The Galindez File) uses the real life 1956 disappearance of Spanish political refugee Jesus de Galindez as its subject. Saffron Burrows plays a privileged college girl named Muriel who travels to Spain in order to finish her doctoral thesis about political rebellion; Galindez is the main focus of her work. With the help of a pair of locals (Guillermo Toledo and Txema Blasco), she learns that Galindez was publicly critical of the Dominican Republic's political leaders who may have been responsible for his death. Muriel eventually travels to Miami in order to uncover the truth. She is opposed throughout her search by an FBI agent (Harvey Keitel) who wants keep the truth hidden as it would reveal unpleasant facts about the United States' role in his disappearance. The film was screened at the 2003 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Saffron Burrows, Harvey Keitel, (more)
- 2003
Directed by Juan Carlos Tabió, Aunque Estés Lejos (So Far Away) initially centers around Marilyn (Susana Pérez), whose first trip back to Cuba after having spent 30 years in Chicago is marred by the death of the aunt she had planned on visiting. At the funeral, she meets Lazaro (Mijail Mulkay), who isn't so much as concerned about the funeral as he is getting a visa from the nearby American embassy. His pleas are denied, however, and as an attraction develops between him and Marilyn, she is forced to choose between Cuba and the United States. After Marilyn decides to stay in Cuba, her plight is revealed to be a fictional account from scriptwriters Pedro (Barbaro Marin) and Mercedes (Mirta Ibarra), who are desperately trying to sell the project to Cuban-born, Spanish-based actor Alberto (Antonio Valero). After Alberto rejects the idea -- he claims that no one would want to return to Cuba after having lived in America -- he finds himself caught up in subway saxophonist Magda's (Laura Ramos) experience in the controversial nation. Sometime after sharing a romantic night with Magda, he realizes she may actually be his daughter from a long since forgotten affair. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Antonio Valero, Mirta Ibarra, (more)
Based on Lorenzo F. Aristarian's novel Rebirth and directed by Adolfo Aristarian, Common Places is a family drama from Argentina. College professor Fernando (Federico Luppi) and his devoted social worker wife Liliana (Mercedes Sampietro) live in a modest apartment in Buenos Aires. When he is forced into retirement and she is at risk of losing her job due to poor funding, they decide to visit their son, Pedro (Carlos Santamaria), who has a comfortable bourgoise lifestyle in Spain. After the father and son express their differences, Liliana and Fernando sell their apartment and buy a house in rural Cordoba. The middle-aged couple enjoy their new setting until Fernando develops pneumonia. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Federico Luppi, Mercedes Sampietro, (more)
- 2002
Chilean director Valeria Sarmiento weaves a tale of love, betrayal, and civil unrest centering around a nightclub in 1950s pre-Communist Cuba in her 2002 romantic drama Rosa La China. Notorious businessman Santiago Ordenez (Juan Luis Galiardo), who primarily goes by the nickname Dulzara, operates a high-profile club/casino with the protection of some local politicians with whom he has dubious relationships. A large portion of the club's success is due to its star singer, Rosa (Luisa Maria Jiminez), who also happens to be Dulzara's lover. Rosa, however, has recently started into another affair with a somewhat younger womanizer named Marcos (Abel Rodriguez). As romantic alliances begin and end, political alliances also begin to shift as Cuba's people begin moving towards revolution, which will a profound affect on Dulzara's club and his way of life. Rosa La China was selected for inclusion into the 2002 Venice Film Festival. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Juan Luis Galiardo, Luisa Maria Jiminez, (more)
- 2002
Director Sergei Bodrov takes a break from his usual socio-political dramas in Bear's Kiss, a surreal fairy tale following Lola (Rebecca Liljeberg), the 14-year-old daughter of long-time circus employees, and her love affair with a shape-shifting bear who calls himself Misha (Sergei Bodrov Jr.). When her father, Marco (Maurizio Donadoni), is killed in a tragic car accident, the circus caravan travels to Spain, where several gypsy fortune-tellers explain the mysterious art of shape-shifting and the responsibilities it entails. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rebecca Liljeberg, Joachim Krol, (more)
