Drama

Hall Bartlett directs the rural drama The Children of Sanchez, based on the novel The Children of Sanchez: Autobiography of a Mexican Family written by Oscar Lewis in the '60s. Anthony Quinn stars as the widowed Jesus Sanchez, a poor farmer struggling to provide for his family in Mexico City. Also starring Lupita Ferrer as Consuelo and Stathis Giallelis as Roberto. This is the last film in the 50-year career of international star Dolores del Rio, who plays the Grandma. Jazz-pop performer Chuck Mangione was nominated for a Golden Globe and won a Grammy award for his original musical score. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

This is a sympathetic, observant drama about the trials and tribulations of Macabea (Marcelia Cartaxo) who has left her home in northeastern Brazil to seek her fortune in Sao Paulo. Macabea misses her friends and family but stays with her dreams for the future -- even in the face of unfair treatment from her fellow office workers, her boyfriend, and her roommates. She has many traits that would resonate in a wide range of viewers, and she easily carries this story based on a novel by Clarice Lispector. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Based on Caridad Bravo Adams' novel, this is the story of a man who eventually falls in love with a woman he had previously wanted to kill. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide

While arch surrealist Luis Bunuel never made a secret of his skepticism about the existence of God, he was also raised as a strict Spanish Catholic and remained fascinated with the church's teaching throughout his life, and his obsessions with both faith and the contradictions of dogma provided the basis for this episodic satiric comedy. Jean (Laurent Terzieff) and Pierre (Paul Frankeur) are two threadbare vagabonds who are making their way from Paris to Spain on a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, where the remains of Saint James are believed to be kept. While Jean and Pierre's journey begins in the 20th Century, as they travel they seemingly develop the ability to move through time and space as they pass through a variety of historical scenes taken from a broad range of theological texts -- and all involving heresy in one form or another. As they walk the long road to Santiago de Compostela (when they can't catch a ride), Jean and Pierre encounter Jesus (Bernard Verley), who decides not to shave his beard to keep his mother happy; a young boy with stigmata and unusual powers; the Marquis de Sade (Michel Piccoli), who patently struggles to teach atheism to a young girl he's captured; an eccentric priest who has an irreversible belief in transubstantiation until he changes his mind; two men who put their debate over Catholic dogma to the test in a duel with swords; and Satan (Pierre Clementi), who shows up just in time for a car wreck. La Voie Lactee (aka The Milky Way) was scripted by Bunuel and his frequent screenwriting collaborator Jean-Claude Carriere; each of the film's historic episodes was adapted faithfully from an actual biblical text or historical account. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this interesting cinematic tour of a woman's memory (winner of the 1985 Cannes Camera d'Or Award), Marie (Daniela Silverio) is a young Venezuelan who has been living in France and returns back home to liquidate her late aunt Oriana's hacienda. As Marie moves at a slow pace through the rooms of the hacienda, closed doors to chambers of memory in her mind begin to open. She recalls her adolescence spent in this house with her reclusive aunt, a woman who never left the premises. As Marie begins to remember events from that era from the perspective of an adult, she realizes why her aunt shut herself away. Parents should be advised that incest is a part of this story. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This effective drama about vengeance and its results is loosely based on practices in the Mexican boondocks where the law can be ignored when it comes to seeking revenge. The tale concerns two brothers who decide to avenge their father's death, as would be expected. But this ill-considered decision leads to a set of problems that continue to spiral downward until both brothers are in way above their heads. The difficulty with vengeance, they discover, is that it never ends. Popular cinematic stars Julio Aleman and Antonio Aguilar star, along with the well-known Emilio "El Indio" Fernández. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

As violence and chaos sweeps across the Mexican landscape no one is safe from the destruction that threatens to wipe out everything in its path in a nail-biting thriller directed by Vicente Fernandez and starring Patricia Aspillaga. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Juan Benegas (Vincete Fernandez) and his brother Pablo (Andres Garcia) return home for the funeral of their domineering mother in this comedy. Along with their father Pedro (Lalo Gonzalez), the brothers declare themselves free of restrictions and vow to have a good time. The three go to town where they pretend to be strangers to fleece the locals in a card game. Their winnings attract the attention of Rossy (Olivia Collins), a pretty bank robber who covets the cash and not the crooks. Soon father and sons are falling all over themselves for the woman, and the camaraderie is crushed. A mariachi band accompanies Fernandez on several ranchero songs. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Neighborhood pride runs deep in Echo Park, so when two lifelong friends join the local gang as a matter of course, they're handed down gang names from the previous generation of homegirls. Unfortunately, Sad Girl (Angel Aviles) and Mousie (Seidy Lopez) don't remain friends for long. When Mousie withdraws into herself to cope with the responsibilities of young motherhood after bearing the child of her one true love, Ernesto (Jacob Vargas), Sad Girl and Ernesto turn to each other for comfort. Soon, Sad Girl herself ends up pregnant, and warm sisterhood cools to an icy feud. Ernesto starts dealing drugs to support his two young families -- and to outfit the gussied-up low rider that he hides from both of his unsuspecting girlfriends. The economic and romantic entanglements of these three characters serve as the entry point into this multifaceted exploration of L.A. street life, but Mi Vida Loca rapidly expands in scope to take in other characters, most of them female. Bleach-blond Whisper (Nelida Lopez), for instance, learns the drug-dealing ropes from Ernesto and considers crossing gender lines to open her own operation. The slightly older Giggles (Marlo Marron), however, refuses to fall into old dependencies and habits after being imprisoned for four years for a crime her boyfriend committed. Sad Girl's sister, La Blue Eyes (Magali Alvarado), the only character to choose college over gang life, chances upon a poem written by a prison inmate and becomes hopelessly smitten, abandoning her books for a passionate jailhouse correspondence. The focus of Mi Vida Loca shifts freely between these and several other characters, many of whom take turns providing narration and context. The director's daughter, Tiffany Anders, has a small role in the film alongside many real-life Echo Park denizens; several musicians and film directors also make cameos, among them Spike Jonze, Kurt Voss, Kid Frost, and the members of Los Lobos. Salma Hayek got her SAG card by playing a tiny role. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide

This big-budget Spanish drama pays tribute to the courageous women who sacrificed their lives during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Maria's peaceful life as a nun is shattered when revolutionary anarchists force her and her sisters to flee their convent sanctuary. Maria ends up hiding in a brothel where she meets the good-hearted whore Charo. Their peace is in turn destroyed by the sudden arrival of Pilar, a passionate, idealistic member of the Free Women organization. Her fiery speeches and strong arm tactics compel the hookers and Maria to join their fight. A handsome ex-priest also joins them as they fight with the anarchists in Zaragoza. Following a small victory, the formerly trench-bound, battle-weary women celebrate, but then Maria finds herself faced with the destruction and death that goes with war. Later the former priest informs the women that they will not be allowed to fight upon the front lines and the women are left with broken ideals and angry hearts that lead them into one last, violent battle. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Circumstances force an unexpected maturity onto 15-year-old Tristan (Fernando Ramallo), an only child who had already been trying quite hard to "grow up" by losing his virginity. He accomplishes this easily enough by arranging for a prostitute to visit his home while his parents are off on a trip. But the life lesson he learns is different from what he'd intended when he learns of his parents' death in an airplane crash. When he moves into his grandparent's home, changes schools and falls in love for the first time, he is no longer able to keep intact his earlier snobberies and childish self-importance. This Spanish-language film is set in the later period of Francisco Franco's rule ('60s and '70s) and features excellent performances by its young cast. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide