Maria Vico Movies

Set in Spain in the early '60s, this slow-paced, sometimes verbose tale revolves around a cell of communists who fell into their politics almost by default. Gone are the days of more dramatic meetings. Now the members of the group talk a lot, hand out political flyers to the public, and are far from the models of revolutionary fervor still found in contemporary Latin American countries. As their ruminations bring the political and cultural context to the fore, the cell leader is unaware that even a tepid political bent can be taken quite seriously by Franco's fascist dictatorship. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

On long summer weekends, Juan (Alfredo Landa) is in the habit of hopping on his motorcycle in Madrid and driving for many hours to Torremolinos, a popular hangout for foreign tourists. There, he indulges in his fondness for romancing foreign girls. In this movie, which won a Gold Prize at the 1977 Moscow Film Festival, the people he meets on his journey form a microcosm of modern Spain. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This Spanish thriller by dilettante director Gonzalo Suarez tells the story of two newlyweds and the uncanny happenings that attend their low-budget honeymoon. For much of the film the audience is treated to scenes of freshly-married bliss. The couple have parked their car/camper combination in a remote area, and generally frolic around. Then they begin to experience some odd occurrences, such as one of their two hamsters killing the other one. When hubby discovers a nearby home where he can get water, the story gets much more complicated and involves a blind woman, a murderer, and some inexplicable symbolism. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Based on the Nobel Prize-winning novel by Boris Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago covers the years prior to, during, and after the Russian Revolution, as seen through the eyes of poet/physician Yuri Zhivago (Omar Sharif). In the tradition of Russian novels, a multitude of characters and subplots intertwine within the film's 197 minutes (plus intermission). Zhivago is married to Tonya (Geraldine Chaplin), but carries on an affair with Lara (Julie Christie), who has been raped by ruthless politician Komarovsky (Rod Steiger). Meanwhile, Zhivago's half-brother Yevgraf (Alec Guinness) and the mysterious, revenge-seeking Strelnikoff (Tom Courteney) represent the "good" and "bad" elements of the Bolshevik revolution. Composer Maurice Jarre received one of Doctor Zhivago's five Oscars, with the others going to screenwriter Robert Bolt, cinematographer Freddie Young, art directors John Box and Terry Marsh, set decorator Dario Simoni, and costumer Phyllis Dalton. The best picture Oscar, however, went to The Sound of Music. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi