Jose Luis Torrijos Movies
- 2002
The infamous man from La Mancha and his devoted sidekick embark on a new quest in this slightly off-kilter version of author Miguel de Cervantes' classic novel Don Quixote, as envisioned by director and screenwriter Manuel Gutierrez Aragon in his 2002 adaptation entitled Don Quixote, Knight Errant. Around the year 1615, Don Quixote (Juan Luis Galiardo) and Sancho Panza (Carlos Iglesias) enjoy the lives of celebrities, as the public was made well aware of their exploits thanks to the writings of De Cervantes. Now well into the twilight of his life, the eccentric nobleman gets the notion that a horde of angry Turks are about to launch a naval attack and Quixote decides it is once again time to suit up in the name of honor. As Quixote and Panza head out to meet their "foes," the anachronistic duo draws the attention and derision of their fellow countrymen. But no matter, Panza is perfectly content to let Quixote do his own thing -- even going so far as to instigate the knight's sense of daring-do, as the men head out to for what may be their final adventure together. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Juan Luis Galiardo, Carlos Iglesias, (more)
Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro returns to the phantasmagorical cinema that defined such early fare as Cronos and The Devil's Backbone with this haunting fantasy-drama set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War and detailing the strange journeys of an imaginative young girl who may be the mythical princess of an underground kingdom. Her mother, Carmen (Ariadna Gil), recently remarried to sadistic army captain Vidal (Sergi López) and soon to bear the cruel military man's child, shy young Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) is forced to entertain herself as her recently-formed family settles into their new home nestled deep in the Spanish countryside. As Ofelia's bed-ridden mother lies immobilized in anticipation of her forthcoming child and her high-ranking stepfather remains determined to fulfill the orders of General Francisco Franco to crush a nearby guerilla uprising, the young girl soon ventures into an elaborate stone labyrinth presided over by the mythical faun Pan (Doug Jones). Convinced by Pan that she is the lost princess of legend and that in order to return to her underground home she must complete a trio of life-threatening tasks, Ofelia sets out to reclaim her kingdom and return to her grieving father as Vidal's housekeeper Mercedes (Maribel Verdú) and doctor (Alex Angulo) plot secretly on the surface to keep the revolution alive. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ariadna Gil, Ivana Baquero, (more)
- 2007
Spanish helmer Jaime Rosales, who dazzled the world with his debut, the 2003 serial killer drama The Hours of the Day, returns to screens for the very different sophomore outing Fragments of Loneliness (AKA Solitary Fragments, 2007) - a defiantly understated and minimalist slice-of-life drama that dissects and explores a myriad of issues affecting contemporary European women. Throughout the narrative, Rosales crisscrosses two ostensibly unrelated substories, which only find a point of intersection in the blood relation of two minor characters. The first tale revolves around Adela (Sonia Almarcha), a woman who lives in the picturesque Basque region of northern Spain. She leads a generally unremarkable existence - separated from her husband Pedro (Jose Luis Torrijo), she struggles to raise their son, Miguelito (Eric Garcia) and provide for her own aging father (Juan Margallo) while working at a dull job in an office. When the monotony and pressure overwhelm Adela, she suddenly cuts loose and moves to busy Madrid, Miguelito in tow, to begin a new life as a conference assistant. Mother and son opt to share a flat with a woman named Ines (Miriam Correa and her romantic partner, Carlos (Luis Villanueva). Adela's life appears to be on the up and up; then tragedy strikes. Meanwhile, in the film's second tale, Ines's widowed mother, the supermarket proprietor Antonia (Petra Martinez) buckles under the strain wrought by her second and third daughters. One, Nieves (Nuria Mencia) indicates that she's dying of terminal cancer; the other; Helena (Maria Bazan) begs Antonia to tap her boyfriend Manolo (Jesus Cracio) for money to finance a second residence. Instead, Antonia opts to sell the first, which threatens to alienate Helena. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sonia Almarcha, Petra Martínez, (more)
