Km. 0

This movie is an utter delight that is bound to leave you with tears of joy or at least a broad smile. Kilometer Zero is where one begins to measure the roads in Madrid Spain. Located on the central Puerto Del Sol Plaza, it provides an obvious rendezvous point for anyone making a connection -- or in this case, mis-connections, where people supposed to meet, wind up meeting people they were not supposed to meet, but perhaps they needed to meet them anyway! Farcical perhaps, but in this case most of the characters seem trapped in a rather unhappy places in their lives, victims of their own disillusionment, or forced choices from the past. These range from strained marriages, to work as a handsome gigolo with a heart, to a hooker with a lack of self confidence, to a young gay man abandoned by his mother, a flamenco dancer, hot as a fire cracker, who lost his parents and seeks a partner on the internet, a would be bridegroom and a won't be bridegroom, with a bride to be that yearns for a boy from her youth, and her sister who yearns more passionately for her boyfriend, an actress without a part, and a director trying to cast a musical as he works out the drama of his own life. Liaisons, gay and straight, take on an almost, well an angelic quality. In the end, our friends find themselves in a much happier place because of their open hearts and these misconnected encounters that change them forever. A strange title, but this movie thoroughly enraptured me. Do not miss it.

This is a completely entertaining, hilariously funny, film. The story revolves around a series of coincidences and mistaken identities among an attractive group of Madrilenos of varied ages and sexual inclinations on a scorching summer day. While the plot, as such, is completely ridiculous and fairly predictible, the performances are uniformly terrific, and there are some very amusing twists and turns on the way to the foregone conclusion. Well worth seeing, much more genuinely amusing than most Hollywood attempts at romantic comedy.

Low-budget and light, KM 0 is - nonetheless - a refreshing blend of drama and romantic comedy. Combining a sprawling Altman-size cast, a touch of Almodovar camp, and a Frank Capra sweetness, the film follows the interaction and evolving connections between 14 strangers from various backgrounds who all share a coincidental meeting place at the center of Madrid, during a highly symbolic heat wave. The varied situations they find themselves in are fairly cut-and-dried at first, but each evolves in an unusual direction, and at least a few of the characters (the younger gay man, the middle aged woman) are quite fascinating and endearing. This attention to detail elevates this charming but messy film above the usual romantic comedy, and the Capra-esquire twist near the film's end was pleasantly unexpected. With the exception of the middle-aged woman, I found the male characters to be much more well developed. The fact that a couple of the women preserve connections to men who treat them badly seemed highly unnecessary - though perhaps realistic, it didn't really work as a critique of sexual politics, and this threw a sour note into an otherwise breezy and pleasant film.

But overall there's plenty of charm here, and I found KM 0 to be mostly a treat.

Madrid's Puerta del Sol, is considered the central point in the city. It's a busy place in the old section of town. The plaza is also a meeting point for people, as it's the case in the film. We are presented about a dozen people that are more interconnected than we imagined, as each life touches another.

"Km. 0" is an entertaining film that shows some characters that are in search of discovering themselves as some of they embark in several sexual encounters. Some will pay off, others not too well. All the characters are affected by the heat wave during that summer day. Most of them will discover something about themselves and will make resolutions for changes in their lives.

The film credits two directors, Yolanda Garcia Serrano and Juan Luis Iborra, who have collaborated before and are also the screen writers. They work a lot on Spanish television. The ensemble cast do a wonderful job under the directors commands.

This is a light fun film with fast pacing that will entertain the viewer. The only odd note is the ending, which is seen from the would be director's eyes, as though everything has been a movie in the making in his imagination.

I rented this twice. I didn't get the chance to see it the first time I brought it home. Something about it nagged me, so I took again. What a truly enjoyable film. A few times I could see around the corners of the script, but many times I was pleasantly surprised. There's not as much of the Madrid scenery as I would have liked to have seen as I've never been there. But beautiful faces made up for beautiful places.

The story line where the older woman meets a male prostitute was an interesting direction, though the results were obvious. The portion about the dancer and the man he meets didn't offer enough meat to be really compelling, so I couldn't give it a 10.

Regardless of the flaws, it was just plain enjoyable. I really liked it a lot. Take this one home!