Probably the one thing that's harder to convince people to go watch than a 1960s sub-committee drama is a film about domestic violence. This is a really good film though and - I promise - is a far less brutally traumatizing than Once Were Warriors.
The focus here is on the context of abusive relationships - the power play of insecurity, dependency and love that cuts across a spectrum of relationships from those considered to be outright abusive to some more 'normal' ones. So probably there will be something here for anyone who's been in a relationship. And some stuff to look out for for those who haven't previously bothered.
The all of the actors are excellent. Special mention has to go to Laia Marull as Pilar - a performance which pins down fear, desire, lust, love, neediness, hope, confusion, submission and strength. Luis Tosar is also outstanding as her abusive husband Antonio, a horribly insecure, frightened, and irrationally jealous man wrapped up in his own perceived victimhood. He tries to do something about the situation but completely fails to understand what change might actually involve. It's testament to the skill of the director, script and cast that you actually wish he'd get it together, rather than just spend the whole film shouting "walk away!" at Pilar. He's so good in this it's almost tempting to watch the 2006 Miami Vice movie - although I'm guessing they cast him as a sociopath Eastern European gangster.
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