Spanish & Portuguese Cinema
Undoubtedly the backbone of Alice's Spanish collection are the films of Pedro Almodovar. Since the 1980s this unique film maker has been bringing us such gems as 'Laws of Desire', 'Women on the Verge...' and 'Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down' and nurturing the talents of actors such as Antonio Banderas, Victoria Abril and Penelope Cruz.
But there is more to Spanish film than the talented Mr Almodovar. Everything from the beautiful and haunting works of Carlos Saura to the off-beat and darkly humourous tales of Alex de Iglesia.
Pictured right: One-of-a-kind helmer, Pedro Almodovar.
Carmen (1983)
7.7/10
Director: Carlos Saura
Starring: Antonio Gades, Laura Del Sol, Paco De Lucia
This flamenco adaptation of Bizet's classic opera "Carmen", based on the novel by Merimee, mixes a dramatic story of jealousy and treachery with actua... Read more
Pepi, Luci, Bom ( Pepi, Luci, Bom and Other Girls Like Mom ) (1980)
6.3/10
Director: Pedro Almodovar
Starring: Carmen Maura, Olvido Gara, Eva Silva
The first feature from Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, made while he was still working at the Post Office. Set during Madrid's post-Franco punk peri... Read more
Cria cuervos (Blu-ray) (1976)
8/10
Director: Carlos Saura
Starring: Geraldine Chaplin
In the twilight of Francisco Franco's dictatorship, an eight-year-old orphan and her two sisters find shelter in the house of their stern aunt, trying... Read more
The Spirit of the Beehive (1973)
8/10
Director: Victor Erice
Starring: Fernando Fernan Gomez, Teresa Gimpera, Ana Torrent
Ana Torrent is unforgettable as a lonely little village girl who sees Boris Karlof's 'Frankenstein' in the town-hall and becomes entranced by the mons... Read more
Tombs of the Blind Dead (1971)
6.2/10
Director: Amando De Ossorio
Starring: Cesar Burner, Lone Fleming, Helen Harp, Maria Silva
13th-century Templars are executed and blinded (by crows) for killing women during blood rituals. They return from their graves as mummified, bloodthi... Read more
Tristana (1970)
7.6/10
Director: Luis Bunuel
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Fernando Rey, Franco Nero
Toledo, Spain, 1923. Tristana, a young woman aged 18, has just lost her mother and is taken in by Don Lope, an impoverished aristocrat known as a free... Read more
Viridiana (1961)
8.2/10
Director: Luis Bunuel
Starring: Francisco Rabal, Silvia Pinal, Fernando Rey
A powerful psychological study of a novice nun (Silvia Pinal) who loses her innocence when forced by her Mother Superior to visit nasty uncle Fernando... Read more
Death of a Cyclist (1955)
7.7/10
Starring: Lucia Bose
A couple having an affair strike a bicyclist with their car and do not offer aid out of fear of their relationship being exposed. Read more
Dracula (1931)
7.6/10
Director: Tod Browning, George Melford
Starring: Bela Lugosi, David Manners, Helen Chandler, Dwight Frye, Edward Van Sloan, Carlo...
Although there have been numerous screen visions of Bram Stoker's classic tale, none is more enduring than this 1931 original. Towering ominously amon... Read more
Un Chien Andalou / Land Without Bread ( Las Hurdes ) (1929)
Director: Luis Bunuel
Luis Bunuel's first film, the surrealistic masterpiece "Un Chien Andalou" ("An Andalusian Dog"), was based after an exchange of dreams with co-writer... Read more