News

Netflix launched two new film titles and shared details on several projects currently in development at a buzzy showcase this afternoon at the San Sebastian Film Festival.

The streamer announced at the event that it will back two new genre projects, Cortafuego directed by David Victori (Cross The Line), and The Black Widow from filmmaker Carlos Sedes (The Summer We Lived).

The Black Widow will be produced by Ramón Campos, Bambú Producciones. The official synopsis shared by the streamer reads: August 2017. The body of a man appears in a parking lot in Valencia, stabbed seven times. Everything points to a crime of passion. The city’s Homicide Group, led by a veteran inspector, begins an investigation against the clock that soon leads them to a suspect that no one expected: Maje, the young widow, sweet and serene, who had been married to the victim for less than a year.

Cortafuego,...

Netflix Spain and Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo – popularly known as Los Javis – are teaming to produce a modern movie makeover of way before its time Spanish classic “My Dearest Señorita,” nominated for a 1973 Academy Award.

The adaptation was the biggest news at a packed-to-the rafters Next on Netflix showcase which took place in Madre on Thursday, where the U.S. streaming giant also announced a docu-reality series, “The Thyssen Baroness,” and released a first-look pic of “Superestar,” its recently announced six-part series inspired by singer and fleeting pop culture phenom Tamara.

Written and directed by Jaime de Armiñán, who co-wrote the script with José Luis Borau, who went on to become of Spain’s greatest directors of the ‘70s and ‘80s, directing “Poachers, ” the original comedy “My Dearest Señorita” starred top Spanish comedian José Luis López Vázquez, as a frumpy old maid in her ‘40s with an inexplicable talent...

Netflix has ordered another Spanish film, My Dearest Señorita, and unveiled a first look at upcoming dram series Superstar at an event in Madrid.

My Dearest Señorita, produced by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, is an adaptation of the 1972 Oscar-winning film of the same name directed by Jaime de Arimañán, who co-wrote the script with José Luis Borau starring José Luis López Vázquez.

The 1970s film was a romantic drama that explored themes of intersexuality, and was one of very few to tackle sexual orientation in General Franco’s ultra-conservative Spain. It won the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film at the 1973 Oscars.

“My Dearest Señorita is an adaptation,” said Calvo and Ambrossi in a statement. “Times have changed, and we believe it is a good time to revisit this story, a story of gender identity and wonderful, mainstream love. The creative challenge is how far we can update it without losing the essence.

‘The Salesman’ (Courtesy: Habib Majidi)

By: Carson Blackwelder

Managing Editor

It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we’re well on our way to seeing how the best foreign language film race will shape up at the Oscars in 2017. Leading the pack of the shortlist is The Salesman from Iran, which could land filmmaker Asghar Farhadi a rare second win in the category. How often do we see someone with more than one win in this worldwide competition?

The shortlist of nine films — more about those here — will, on January 24, be trimmed down to the official five nominees that will eventually face off at the Oscars on February 26. This site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg, lists the current frontrunners as: Germany’s Toni Erdmann (written and directed by Maren Ade), Denmark’s Land of Mine (written and directed by Martin Zandvliet), Sweden’s A...

Almodóvar aficionados, like you and I, have been dreading this day. But every great movie face eventually only still flickers on screens and in our memories. The great Chus Lampreave, so memorable in so many Pedro Almodóvar movies, has died at 85 years of age. She had been home bound recently in Almería.

Her film career began when Pedro was just a pre-teen. She was given her first acting job by the director Jaime de Armiñán. Like many directors after him, he worked with her repeatedly, including in the Oscar nominated film My Dearest Senorita (1972). She came to international fame via her relationship with Pedro Almodóvar though. She joined his troupe early on as one of his subversive nuns in Dark Habits (1983). She was always easy to spot with those coke bottle glasses, that tiny frame and inimitable voice. Dark Habits was the first of eight collaborations with Pedro over the...

'The Grandfather': Fernando Fernán Gómez as the 'abuelo' of the title. 'The Grandfather' movie review: Gorgeous, surprisingly effective sentimental family drama with strong central performance The Grandfather / El abuelo is a film with a pedigree. It is based on a novel by Benito Pérez Galdòs, considered by many the greatest Spanish writer of the 19th century. Its director, José Luis Garci, took home the 1982 Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award for Beguin the Beguine / Volver a empezar. Its star, veteran Fernando Fernán Gómez, whose film career spanned more than six decades, was one of the most admired actors in Spain. Add to that the stunning work of cinematographer Raúl Pérez Cubero and Manuel Balboa's evocative score, and the sum total should be a cinematic masterpiece. Well, not quite. Garci had perhaps been watching too many Mexican soap operas, for that is the feel he gives to this gorgeous-looking tale...