Solas

Many thanks to Benito Zambrano for this beautiful delineation of human dilemmas humanely faced. Maria Galiana, as an elderly Spanish woman caught in the trap of a very bad marriage, but able to maintain her generosity and ability to love, is superb and inspiring. Her grown daughter, played with passion by Ana Fernandez, is more sophisticated and bitter. She has allowed herself to be used by a man, not unlike her unfeeling father, and her protrayal makes us sympathize with her, particularly when she finds she's pregnant and the man refuses to help her. And then there is the daughter's neighbor, played by Carlos Alvarez-Novia...a lonely old man with only his amazing dog for companionship. How he and the mother establish a tender, but "proper" relationship is a piece of rare and subtle film-making. I see no similarity between Zambrano's movie and the work of Mike Leigh (who apparently inspired him). Real people, yes, but the values demonstrated by Zambrano far surpass, in my estimation, those of Mike Leigh. My highest recommendation to anyone interested in a film that has soul, without sentimentality or grossness.

A very touching movie. During the movie you almost start wondering if there are only sad people around. But even the saddest ones (and they now, because they have had a fight about who the saddest one was) can shift to a better life.

Solas is a Spanish story of the interrelationships between a hard drinking thirty five year old woman, her saintly mother, her wicked father and a lonely neighbour. The initial themes deal not only with motherly concepts, but with desperation, alienation and loss of happiness caused by an anonymous world. The tale seems stark and slow at first, and you think, O Lordy, this is a bit bloody grim! But at some indifinable point, you're hooked! Solas is one of the most moving films I've seen. The acting, characterisation and dialogue (as far as I could tell from the subtitles) is priceless. Solas is quietly masterful, a rewarding work of passion. Simply recalling how the characters started out and comparing that with how they ended up is awe inspiring. 10/10

"Solas" spends its 100 minute run digging deep into the character of Maria (Fernández), an attractive 35 year old brittle pessimist who bears the scars of childhood abuse at the hands of her father, drinks too much, and works as a janitor. A somber, plodding, plaintive character study, "Solas" fleshes out its small ensemble of characters well, illuminating the dark corners of Maria's hopelessness with an unlikely combination of her visiting mother's quiet courage and the friendship of an old man in a neighboring apartment. An award winning film hailed by the critics and an exemplar for American Indie makers, "Solas" will appeal most to more mature audiences into Europix. Those who enjoy this film may want to check out "El Abuelo" (1998). (B)

Nowadays it is not so easy to find a film that hits directly your heart and sentiments. Benito Zambrano gives an opportunity to recover all those sentiments that are well hidden in your subconscious.

Carmona is a small town too close to Seville to have a real identity and is the frame for a difficult and impossible relationship between a daughter, mother and father. Zambrano shows how difficult is to grow up in this outcast and bit farmer town with the leit-motiv of these three characters that join back together due to the father's illness. The father is marked rude and impolite, used to hit the wife or the daughter to show his total dominance and authority. The wife was totally subjected to this situation and the opportunity to find some understanding and heat with their neighbour is accepted with detachment by her. This side relationship with a lonely man brings back love to this sad and destroyed family. The daughter is even worse, alcoholic and in love with a truck driver who does not care of her pregnancy.

The loneliness of the void with a breach of optimism is well expressed in this simple but very effective and straight film.

Rating: 7/10