Irene Montalà Movies

A French writer finds his life is once again being turned sideways by his footloose European friends in this sequel to the international hit L'Auberge Espagnole. Five years after we last saw him, Xavier (Romain Duris) has given up his aspirations of a career in international finance, but his new path as a writer isn't going as well as he hoped; his novel about his experiences in Spain has yet to be published, and lately he's been writing scripts for a French soap opera. When his French producers enter into a co-production agreement with a British network and Xavier lands an assignment ghost-writing a tell-all autobiography for famous fashion model Celia Shelburn (Lucy Gordon), he finds himself spending plenty of time traveling between Paris and London. In London, Xavier becomes reacquainted with Wendy (Kelly Reilly), whom he met during his time in Spain, and he wonders if he should take another stab at a relationship with her; Wendy is currently involved, but is increasingly frustrated with her boyfriend's drug problems and mood swings. Xavier is also infatuated with Celia, and wonders if a dalliance with the glamorous model might be possible. Needing romantic advice, Xavier turns to another old friend, Isabelle (Cécile De France), a lesbian who offers her understanding of women as well as a spare bedroom in her flat. Xavier also gets pointers from his ex-girlfriend Martine (Audrey Tautou), who has a child from a former beau and is trying to sort out her own romantic troubles. Russian Dolls (aka Les Poupées Russes) also features Kevin Bishop, reprising his role as William from the first film. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Cujo's got nothing on this fearsome canine as beast fuses with metal to create the ultimate killing machine in this tale survival from genre specialist Brian Yuzna. An innocent man imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, Dante's (William Miller) future looks increasingly grim until an unexpected window of opportunity allows him the chance to flee the confines of his bleak prison cell. Upon realizing that Dante has escaped, the corrupt authorities unleash their ultimate weapon -- an unstoppable, bone-crunching hybrid of canine and machine with a taste for flesh and metal scissors for jaws. In a battle that goes beyond man-versus-machine, the stage is set for the ultimate game of survival. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A doctor's past comes back to haunt him in an unexpected way in this modern variation on the classic tale of Faust. Dr. Fausto (Miguel Angel Sola) is a respected oncologist whose career has practically taken over his life; he has no wife or children, and he's barely aware of the fact his beautiful assistant Julia (Najwa Nimri) is obviously in love with him. One day, Fausto finds himself so overwhelmed with his wildly stressful career that be begins pondering suicide as he waits for a train, only to be interrupted by Julia, who brings him the briefcase he left at his office. After boarding his train, the distraught Faust encounters Santos Vella (Eduard Fernandez), who introduces himself as one of Fausto's former patients; after Fausto removed his stomach and informed him that he had but three months to live, Vella opted to stop seeing doctors and ignore their advice -- and he says he's been feeling fine ever since. Despite Vella's contemptuous attitude towards modern medicine, he is both friendly and grateful to Fausto, and insists on giving the doctor a ride after a taxi breakdown leaves Fausto stranded. From then on, Fausto finds he can't get rid of his new friend, no matter how hard he tries -- everywhere he goes, Vella is close behind, and when Faust declares that he needs female companionship instead, Vella arranges for Fausto to spend the evening with Marta (Irene Montala), a prostitute who proves to be similarly unavoidable. Fausto 5.0 was the first motion picture directed and produced by members of La Fura, an acclaimed Spanish theater troupe. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi