Posts Tagged ‘El Lobo’

11
Jan

Favourite flicks of 2006

   Posted by: Fence   in Moving Pictures

Well, I did the books so now I’m turning my attention to the films. And in no particular order my top films of 2006 are:

  • The Departed[1]
    Violent and great. But must be call “The Depaaahrted” for proper effect. Both DiCaprio & Damon were great, but the whole supporting cast were fantastic.
  • Pan’s Labyrinth[2]
    I loved this film. Visually stunning, and with a great story as well. Brilliant.
  • Little Miss Sunshine[3]
    Just wonderful. Funny and touching and so watchable. And another film with a great child actor, Pan’s Labyrinth being the other.
  • United 93[4]
    This may be here because of subject matter rather then purely the film, but I still think it deserves a mention. Gripping both because of the drama/tension raised, but also because of what you know happened.
  • Severance[5]
    Because who doesn’t love a silly gore-filled comedy. Not quite in the same league as Shaun of the Dead but I loved it all the same.
  • Superman Returns[6]
    Not perfect, but pretty damn close. Let down by having Bosworth play Lois Lane, but I thought that Routh was perfection as Supes.
  • The Wind That Shakes The Barley[7]
    This is one that’ll feature in quite a few history classes over the coming years I’d guess. The Irish civil war in all its violence and brutality.
  • El Lobo[8]
    Another Spanish language film, this time set in the 1970’s, and involving terrorism. Didn’t know anything about it before going it, but thought it was a very good film.
  • Junebug[9]
    This was just lovely. Yes, it is a quirky independent film but don’t hold that against it.
  • The Proposition[10]
    Nick Cave writes a film, we’re all expecting darkness, and that is certainly present. Very violent and harsh, but a great film.
  • Mirrormask[11]
    It may be a little similar plotwise to films like Labyrinth but this is still a great film in its own right. Great visuals.
  • Merry Christmas aka Joyeux Noel[12]
    This came out in 2005, but I didn’t see it til Jan 2006, so it still makes my list. Set in the trenches of World War I this is a story based on the true-life unofficial truce between the opposing sides of that war, and it makes for a great film.

Linknotes:
  1. full review of The Departed ↩
  2. my review of Pans Labyrinth ↩
  3. full review of Little Miss Sunshine ↩
  4. review of United 93 ↩
  5. full review of Severance ↩
  6. review of Superman Returns ↩
  7. My review of TWTSTB ↩
  8. My review of El Lobo ↩
  9. review of Junebug ↩
  10. My review of The Proposition ↩
  11. review of Mirrormask ↩
  12. my review of Merry Christmas ↩
Tags: El Lobo, favfilms2006, Favourite films, Junebug, Little Miss Sunshine, Merry Christmas, Mirrormask, Pan's Labyrinth, Severance, Shaun of the Dead, Superman Returns, The Departed, The Proposition, The Wind That Shakes The Barley, United 93

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20
Jun

El Lobo (Wolf)

   Posted by: Fence   in Moving Pictures

Dit: Miguel Courtois
Writ: Antonio Onetti

  • Eduardo Noriega …. Txema
  • José Coronado - Ricardo
  • Mélanie Doutey - Amaia
  • Silvia Abascal - Begoña
  • Santiago Ramos - Pantxo
  • Patrick Bruel - Nelson

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In the 1970’s, as Franco’s dictatorship of Spain was slowly coming to an end, Txema finds himself getting involved with some Basque terrorists. In the middle of the night some ETA members show up at his door, and, friends with one, he allows them stay the night. As he chats with them he discovers that they are out to kill an informer. A man that Txema knows, a local taxi driver. Feeling guilty, Txema leaves a warning note on the Taxi, but it comes to late, and in the aftermath of the murder Txema is arrested.

And the Spanish secret service want to use him as an undercover agent. At first he refuses, but financial pressure, and the collapse of his business mean that he turns back to the police. It is suggested, but never said that it was police intervention that lead to his financial problems.

The rest of the film details Txema’s life with ETA as a mole, with the code name Lobo.

When I headed into the cinema, I had no idea what I wanted to watch, and this was on at just the right time, so despite not knowing anything about it, I decided to go see it. And I’m glad did. I know very little about Spain’s recent history, so it was interesting to see this film. The film opens with Txema running through the streets, carrying a gun, clearly fleeing the police. We have no idea who he is, or what is going on. but through flashbacks Txema’s backstory is revealed.

The acting is all great, you get a clear picture of Txema as uncertain and unsure through much of the film. He is doing what he thinks is right, but he doesn’t know if it is. And as he gets closer and closer to the leadership of ETA he can clearly sympathise with their positions, if not their methods. But although politics are clearly the driving force behind this film, they aren’t really investigated. Maybe I should say they are never overtly investigated, but the actions of both sides are shown. Both the terrorists and the police seem equally as violent as each other. This of course makes Noriega allt he more sympathetic, he is caught between both worlds.

Overall I enjoyed this film, it is well paced and keeps you entertained, and although over 2 hours doesn’t feel that long.

IMDb | Empire

Tags: 1970s, 9 Stars, Antonio Onetti, Eduardo Noriega, El Lobo, fascism, José Coronado, Mélanie Doutey, Miguel Courtois, Patrick Bruel, Santiago Ramos, Silvia Abascal, Spain - ETA, Spain - fascism, Spanish, subtitled, terrorism

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