Juan Diaz Movies
- 2008
A man in his mid-twenties reveals an unusual attitude about love and mortality in this offbeat romantic drama. Ilan (Miguel Angel Silvestre) is a mathematician who has unique ideas about love -- he believes that a connection between two people is like a formula that's dependent on the right set of random integers falling into place. That doesn't stop Ilan and his pals Eric (Felix Gomez) and Andy (Juan Diaz) from spending their free time looking for the ideal woman, and one day when they're in a café and Ilan spies beautiful Lisa (Barbara Goenaga) playing his favorite song on the jukebox, he suspects he may have finally found the girl for him. However, not long after encountering the woman of his dreams, Ilan learns that he's contracted a virulent form of melanoma that can only be treated with radical chemotherapy. To the chagrin of his mother (Diana Bracho), Ilan decides against the treatment and instead decides to take his chances with fate, and he similarly chooses to let Lisa come to him in his final months -- if they are meant to be together, she'll approach him, and otherwise he'll regard their meeting as a brief moment of good fortune. 3:19 was the first feature film from writer and director Danny Saadia, and was adapted from his award-winning short film Genesis 3:19. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Miguel Angel Silvestre, Félix Gómez, (more)
- 2007
- PG13
A twentysomething misfit dedicates his life to giving the drummer some, even when the drums are only imaginary, in this comedy written and directed by comic Ari Gold. Power (Gold) grew up in a small mining town in New Mexico, where his father (Michael McKean) always imagined his son would one day join him in digging copper from the earth. But Power has a dream of playing the drums, and since he doesn't have a drum kit, he's become a master of "air drums," flailing his arms in the manner of Neil Peart or Keith Moon against a huge but nonexistent set of traps. Power's desire to become the world's greatest air drummer doesn't earn him much respect at home, so he travels to Mexico, where he learns of an air-drumming competition in Newark, NJ. Power hits the road for the garden state and meets Carlos (Steven Williams), a master air drummer who becomes his guide in the art of not really playing. Power also gets some much-needed encouragement from Annie (Shoshannah Stern), a sweet born-again girl living upstairs from him. But when Power learns that his father back home is leading a strike to save jobs for the employees at the local copper mine, winning the title becomes a matter of defending the honor of his family and his hometown, and he dedicates himself to defeating arrogant country music star Dallas Houston (Adrien Grenier), who is favored to win. Adventures of Power also stars Jane Lynch, Travis Johns, and Jimmy Jean-Louis. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ari Gold, Michael McKean, (more)
Jorge Iglesias' comedy Gente Pez concerns the exploits of two friends who find themselves responsible for the large apartment of a relative who is not charging them any rent. The twosome hit upon the seemingly perfect idea of renting out the place on their own and living with hardly any responsibilities whatsoever. Soon enough the numerous tenants, and their own bad judgment, gets them into a series of wild predicaments. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
This Spanish drama takes an unblinking look at the grim realities of life among Madrid's economically and spiritually underprivileged underclass. David (Unax Ugalde) is a homeless man who struggles to get by with the help of his friends -- dope-dealing Carlos (Juan Diaz), cheerful but misguided Abundio (Fede Celada), and half-bright Titanlux (Benjamin Seva). One day, David meets a beautiful woman, Maria (Pilar Lopez de Ayala), and is immediately smitten. He sets out to earn her affections, and as Maria is charmed by David's ardor (as well as his poetry), she quits her job at a diner to be with him. David and Maria move in to Carlos's apartment, but Carlos's girlfriend Elena (Beatriz Sanchez) is not at all happy with their presence and asks them to leave. Desperate to earn some money, David makes the acquaintance of Facundo (Antonio Dechent), a high-level drug dealer who supplies Carlos with his product. Facundo recruits David as a new salesman and he starts pushing heroin on the streets, quickly making enough money to afford an apartment for Maria and himself. But Maria is eager to make some extra money of her own, and when she meets Veronica (Beatriz Arguello), a prostitute living in their building, she follows her lead and is soon turning tricks on the side; when David finds out about her new career, he soon turns to heroin to ease his heartbreak. Bailame El Agua's soundtrack features the song "But By Your Side" by Los Secretos -- grimly ironic, since vocalist Enrique Urquijo, who helped write the song, died of a drug overdose by the time the film appeared in Spanish theaters. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
In a real change-of-pace role, Barbara Mandrell is cast as Texas widow Ruth Wagner, the mother of Leslie Wanger (Tracey Gold), who is expecting a baby of her own. Both mother and daughter are plunged into despair when Leslie's infant son is kidnapped, almost literally from the womb, by ex-prostitute Karen (Lisa Zane), who desperately hopes that her "instant" family will prevent her drug-dealing husband Cody (William Moses) from tossing her back on the street. Adding to the burden of the Wagner family is the fact that Ruth is suffering from a heart condition that could snuff her out at any moment. Described by one TV critic as "the stupidest TV-movie of the century thus far" (it wasn't, but it came mighty close), Stolen from the Heart debuted January 26, 2000 on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tracey Gold, Lisa Zane, (more)
