Montserrat Julio Movies

This allegorical drama is said to depict the state of Spanish society under Franco's dictatorship, and the film won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival in 1978. In the story, nothing can possibly go wrong at the annual dinner of the fishing club. Nothing will go wrong. The members are determined to see it just that way, despite evidence to the contrary. A mob of outsiders just tried to crash the party. The cooks briefly went on strike but were persuaded to serve up the members' catch of trout anyway. The fish is liberally dosed with good-tasting sauces. Despite the awful taste, the fish cannot possibly be rotten -- after all, the loyal members of the club just caught them. Nothing is wrong with the members either, although they appear to be dying. The party will go on, the usual self-congratulatory speeches will be made, and the awards will be given. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Jose Luis Lopez Vasquez stars in Dona Perfecta as a young citizen of Madrid who responds to his aunt's summons to her village with curiosity and some skepticism. She has arranged for him to marry her daughter, his first cousin. Romantically, everything works out wonderfully, as the two fall in love and are completely willing to wed. However, a closer examination of the young city-dweller by his prospective in-laws has a quite different result on the family. The story of this film is based on a 19th-century novel by Benito Perez Galdo. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Though the story told in Robin and Marian is unfamiliar to most audiences, it is actually quite faithful to several of the ancient Robin Hood legends. During the Crusades, Robin (Sean Connery) is still loyal to King Richard the Lionheart (Richard Harris), but even he has trouble adjusting to the monarch's ever-increasing paranoia and lunacy. After Richard's death, Robin returns to England, his first visit to his home turf in 20 years. He looks up his beloved Maid Marian (Audrey Hepburn, last seen in 1967's Wait Until Dark), who is now a middle-aged nun. No sooner do Robin and Marian renew their relationship than the aging Merry Men demand Robin's services in thwarting their old foe, the Sheriff of Nottingham (Robert Shaw). Marian is aghast that the long-standing feud between Robin and the sheriff threatens to expand into wholesale bloodshed. The two venerable enemies agree to one last mano a mano battle -- only to watch helplessly as the all-out war they'd tried to avoid commences anyway. Both the tragic climax and Robin's last, defiant arrow shot are drawn directly from authentic Robin Hood ballads of the 14th and 15th centuries. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Sheridan LaFanu's classic vampire tale Carmilla has been filmed (faithfully or otherwise) as Vampyr and Blood and Roses. The 1972 Spanish production Till Death Do Us Part is the most recent adaptation of the LaFanu original. This time, Maribel Martin plays the virginal young bride who falls under the influence of a seductive female vampire (Alexandra Bastedo). The lesbian subtext of Carmilla is handled with reasonable taste, though more blatantly than in earlier filmizations. Simon Andreu and Dean Selmier costar. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi