Marta Fernandez-Muro Movies

Set in the mid-1980s, this sitcom-like domestic comedy centers on a bright young man's endeavors to escape his crazy family life. Jorge's ordeal began when his recently-widowed mother Carmen moved herself, him and his brother Alvaro into her parent's comfortable but strange middle-class home. Their grandfather is a stern Francoist general suffering from alcoholism, memory loss and an earnest desire to launch a military coup. Their grandmother is stone deaf, domineering and has not spoken to her husband in years. Duli the maid never stops smiling. An introverted intellectual sort in his late teens, Jorge finds the situation difficult to accept. His rebellious brother Alvaro, who wants to be a Mod and turn Madrid into a riotous version of Brighton Beach during the mid- '60s, also hates it there, but as their mother is busily studying for her college degree, they have little choice. Jorge turns to stealing money from his increasingly forgetful grandfather in order to escape the crazy household. While Jorge busily makes himself rich, the grandfather somehow manages to pull off his coup. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Behind the peaceful walls of an impoverished medieval Spanish convent lies a teeming hotbed of ambition, lies and double-crossing as can be seen in this powerful, thought-provoking drama that is based upon Jesus Fernandez Santos' novel. The convent is set in an arid area and sole support comes from the local duke. The plague has been ravaging the surrounding town and panicky residents who are not yet afflicted flee. Sister Angela becomes ill and is nursed by her devoted friend Sister Ana. Angela slowly gets stronger and as she does, she begins reading about the lives of the saints. She begins to believe that the only way to save the decimated village from further chaos is to host a miracle. Sister Angela then has Sister Ana make deep slices into her palms to look like stigmata. The townsfolk believe that Angela's hands are bleeding spontaneously, but the mother superior isn't so sure and sets out to prove the miracle a fake. She can't and the villagers begin to revere Sister Angela as a saint. The mother superior can't bear this, and when Sister Angela is elected the new prioress, she goes over the edge with her desire for revenge. Things get even worse when the duke shows up and promises to give the convent enough support to make them one of the most powerful in Spain if they will host his daughter, who is thinking about joining the nunnery. Unfortunately, the haughty young woman is more interested in running things her own way. The deposed mother superior conspires with her at every opportunity, and when Sister Angela's palms suddenly becoming dangerously infected, the prioress finally gets her chance for revenge. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Popular film director Pablo Quintero (Eusebio Poncela) has found a new love in the form of handsome blue-collar Juan (Miguel Molina). Not altogether comfortable with his lifestyle, Juan decides to leave Pablo for a while to contemplate his future. Pablo insists that Juan keep in touch by sending him love letters. Ever the director, he plans to write the letters himself, and have Juan mail them back with his signature. If you think that settles things, you don't know filmmaker Pedro Almodovar. Among the many plot complications in Law of Desire is Pablo's subsequent romance with the possessive Antonio (Antonio Banderas, whose "gay kiss" in the film prompted front-page headlines in the Brazilian press), and Pablo's efforts to film the life story of his sister (Carmen Maura), who started out life as his brother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this confusing crime story, a police inspector has two days to solve some ugly murders, and he travels all over Madrid to uncover the sinister deeds of a Latin American government prone to torture and political assassinations. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

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, All Movie Guide

Released in Spain as Volver a Empezar, To Begin Again features Antonio Ferrandis as a celebrated Spanish author. Returning to his homeland after being more or less exiled during the 1937 Civil War, Ferrandis crosses the path of his former love, Encarna Paso. Alas, Ferrandis is suffering from one of those unnamed terminal illnesses that infest high-gloss movie weepers of this kind. To Begin Again won a 1982 Oscar for Best Foreign Film. The little-known Jose Luis Garci was the film's "auteur," wearing several hats as producer, director, and co-scenarist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide