Paulina Gálvez Movies

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 guy finds himself living most men's fantasy, only to learn it isn't as much fun as he imagined in this offbeat Italian comedy. Alberto Colombo (Maurizio Nichetti) has spent 20 years working an insignificant desk job with a large multinational corporation, and he not only has little to show for his efforts, but like most of his co-workers, he fears he could be fired at any moment. What's worse, the heads of the firm have insisted that their Italian employees learn to speak English in the name of efficiency, which only makes things more difficult and annoying for him and his co-workers. Colombo gets little respite at home, since his wife Margarita (Maria de Medeiros), who manages a fast-food restaurant, has decided they should speak English at home as well. Colombo thinks he's reached the end of the line -- both personally and professionally -- when he's sent on assignment to Melancias, a small Latin American community where several employees have disappeared in the past while searching for oil reserves. Colombo assumes the worst, but once he arrives, he discovers most of the workers sent to Melancias are alive and well and stayed there by choice; it seems that the town is populated almost entirely by beautiful women, and no man who arrives there will ever want for romantic attention. But Colombo soon discovers that even paradise can have a downside, as he learns it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Honolulu Baby was directed and co-scripted by leading man Maurizio Nichetti; the picture was shot on 35 mm film, then transferred to digital video for post-production work, including special color manipulation. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This allegorical drama follows the adventures of Francis (Miguel Molina) and Simona (Mercedes Ortega), a pair of youthful bohemians who have returned to Spain after a spiritual pilgrimage to India. Short on money, Simona begins dancing for tips at a Barcelona watering hole, and when Francis decides he wants to further his studies in India, he leaves without her, leaving Simona to fend for herself when Mariel (Alexis Valdes), a rough-hewn drug dealer, becomes a regular at the bar and begins pursuing a romance with her. Tatawo was the debut feature from writer and director Jo Sol. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Mario Gas directed this music-themed Spanish drama set in Barcelona of the mid-'80s. When famed composer Lluis Doria (Laurent Terzieff) visits a transvestite club, he learns his lifelong friend Albert Rossell (Serge Reggiani) is the house pianist. A flashback takes the tale four decades into the past where the younger Rossell (Pere Ponce) rejoins Teresa (Paulina Galvez) after having spent years in prison for helping anti-Franco anarchists. The story continues into Paris of the '30s, the period when Doria and Rossell first met, sharing a mutual interest in music and Teresa, before civil war sent them in different directions. Shown at the 1998 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

A relatively simple coming-of-age drama with autobiographical overtones from Carlos Saura, one of Spain's leading directors, the story is told from the viewpoint of 10-year-old Manu as he is shuffled from relative to relative in the hometown of his parents, who are busy trying to decide whether or not to divorce. That each of Manu's relatives is eccentric only adds spice to the low-key tale. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi