The comedy La vida padre with Karra Elejalde, the dramas Cadejo Blanco and Chica y la Añara, and the documentary Lourdes highlight this week’s program.
In this family comedy, Karra Elejalde and Enric Auquer team up to bring humor and culinary flair to the screen, portraying a father and son navigating love, food, and ambition.
The father, who has been missing for three decades, reappears at a pivotal moment for his son’s restaurant and shifts his views on cooking and life in surprising ways.
VIOLENCE IN CADEJO BLANCO, GUATEMALA
Actress Karen Martínez shoulders the dramatic weight, playing a young woman who infiltrates a gang to uncover the fate of her missing sister.
Directed by Justin Lerner, Cadejo Blanco premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and the Malaga Film Festival and earned a nomination for Best Ibero-American Feature Film at the 64th Ariel Awards. [Cite: Toronto International Film Festival, Malaga Film Festival, Ariel Awards]
GIRL AND SPIDER, A POETIC LOOK AT SEPARATION
Swiss brothers Ramón and Silvan Zürcher present a lyrical drama about breakups. As boxes shift and cabinets are moved, emotional chasms widen and the audience rides a swelling emotional arc.
The film is the second installment in a trilogy about the need for unity, beginning with The Strange Kitten (2013), which was shown at the Berlinale. [Cite: Berlinale, trilogy overview]
SPECIAL DESERT, INTELLIGENT AND DISTURBING DRAMA
The Brazilian candid drama follows a notorious police officer who becomes a ghost in pursuit of a digital lover. Directed by Aly Muritiba, the film explores themes of love and humanity through a queer lens.
Special Desert earned an audience award at the Venice Film Festival. [Cite: Venice Film Festival]
HOUSE BETWEEN CACTUS, A SIGNIFICANT RETURN
In a Canary Island setting, Ariadna Gil and Dani Grao portray a couple whose tranquil life is upended by a stranger’s intrusion. The story unfolds as a prequel to Carlota Gómez-Adrio’s debut feature, centered on a family living with secrets on a windswept plateau. Their sanctuary now faces danger from the outside world.
The film opens in San Sebastian this Friday and adapts Paul Pen’s popular novel for the screen. [Cite: San Sebastian Film Festival, Paul Pen adaptation]
DRAGONFLEAS IMAGINE A BRIGHTER TOMORROW
The Malaga Festival’s standout surprise, Dragonflies arrives on screens months later. It follows Milena Smith and Olivia Baglivi as two young people trapped in a hopeless universe who dream of flight, seeking an escape at any cost.
Dragonflies is a powerful, hopeful drama about resilience and the will to break free. [Cite: Malaga Festival]
OLGA, A LIFE IN EXILE
This tale centers on elite gymnastics and the 2013 Ukrainian revolution, following a young athlete, Elie Grappe’s first feature film, Olga, as it examines the personal struggles faced by those living in exile.
The film screened at Cannes, where it won Best Screenplay, and it represents Switzerland in the Oscar race. [Cite: Cannes Film Festival, Swiss Oscar entry]
ONE OF FEAR: INVITATION
Horror fans will meet Eve, played by Nathalie Emmanuel, who encounters a distant cousin and is drawn into a chilling family gathering in the English countryside.
Invited to a lavish wedding, Eve discovers dark secrets that unravel into a nightmare. [Cite: festival screening]
A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE PAST AT LOURDES
Since 1860, millions have visited the Lourdes grotto in France seeking faith or curiosity. French directors Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai explore what lies beyond belief in Lourdes, a provocative anthropological documentary with a substantial French audience. [Cite: French reception]
LA PAMPA INSPIRED BY REAL EVENTS
Destiny links Juan, fleeing justice, with Reina, a teenager escaping abuse in La Pampa, a mafia-controlled zone. Based on true events, the drama unfolds across the crime-ravaged Peruvian Amazon and is a collaborative production involving Chile, Peru, and Spain. [Cite: production notes]