O Amor Prejudica Seriamente a Saúde

Manuel Gómez-Pereira was on a roll, with movies that were each one more polished than the previous one and each one of them having a really good reception from both audiences and critics (the Javier Bardem starred "Boca a boca", now almost forgotten, was talked about everywhere and seen as a contemporary Madrid screwball classic), so he had all the budget and almost everything he wanted for his next movie, this one, in which he decided to talk about love.

A story of a non romantically engaged couple destined to jump into each other at different points of time, with two young actors (Gabino Diego, Penélope Cruz) who looked nothing like the same character elder ones (Juanjo Puigcorbé, Ana Belén) but with some impressive set pieces that also tell the recent history of Spain. It attempts to be several things at the same time: didactic about history and circumstances, and absurd, tragic, and funny about the romcom, and succeeds mostly. This is a common thing in the Gómez-Pereira later works: he never hits all the spots that he is trying to hit, but I admire him for trying so much.

Costumes, cast. The Bernardo Bonezzi soundtrack, all the technical details are incredible. It feels a bit disjointed but it is also very poignant, and the dance scene is one of my favourite movie scenes ever.

In the 60s , Madrid , Beatles are in Spain , two young people, a gorgeous girl named Diana (Penelope Cruz) and the bellboy named Santi (Gabino Diego) meet at a luxurious hotel room as a result of their devotion to John Lennon . Later on , they take diverse ways , however they will have a recurring relationship during the next thirty years at the oddest places , in the most strange moments , and during historical events that defined ulterior decades . Years later , Diana (One time grown-up performed by Ana Belen) will marry a cocky , wealthy man (Luis Fernando Alves) , she will divorce him and marry an Italian tenor named Raimondi (Carles Sans) . While , Santi (one time grown-up played by Juanjo Puigcorbe) has already married María José (Laura Conejero) and her unfaithfulness is bringing him lots of problems .

A very pleasant romantic comedy plenty of humor , emotion , sensitive scenes and mayhem . "Love Can Seriously Damage Your Health" is Pereira's return to top form, with an intelligent and engaging script which uses amusing situations to give us a good movie in a high sense and intimate sensitivity and that kept me entertained for the almost two hours and some of duration . Rightly enjoyable and fun-filled , milestone comedy which neatly combines humor , mirth , entertaining situations and amusement . Pay attention as one couple of younger actors very well played by Gabino Diego and Penelope Cruz alternate with the other pair of older players perfectly performed by Ana Belen and Juanjo Puigcorbe to recreate this 30 year span in this splendid comedy . Flawless story with a quartet of sensational protagonists , including an unforgettable Penelope Cruz who though plays a secondary acting , she parades sexily at her best and more relaxed and enticing than ever . The hit of the show is undoubtedly for the fetching Penelope who gives one of the best screen acting . I liked everyone in the excellent cast, and the male and female actors , especially Penelope Cruz , were all very attractive . I have seen many, Hollywood-romantic-comedies that couldn't compare with this one, but many give them a higher rating because they are Hollywood-made . The screenplay manages a lot of laughs from the audience and romantic elements that you never loose your attention from the film. The only flaw I can find is that some of the story lines are left unexplained and some character arcs end up being implausible. Some situations are laugh out loud ridiculous and the story proceeds at a breakneck speed that never flags . This movie is a lot of fun and well worth the time. I enjoyed the film tremendously and I guarantee you that if you rent it, you'll enjoy it and have a few laughs. It was funny, great actors and a super soundtrack composed by recently deceased Bernando Bonezzi . Furthermore , a colorful and evocative cinematography by Juan Amoros . Nice special effects showing historical deeds in ¨Forrest Gump¨ style . Rating : Better than average Spanish comedy , you will be glad to saw it. The picture will appeal to Penelope Cruz fans .

The motion picture was well written and directed by Manuel Gomez Pereira . He usually writes his films and occasionally for other directors as "What Makes Women Laugh?" by Joaquin Oristell who in "Love Can Seriously Damage Your Health" is screenwriter and producer ; both of them are ordinary collaborators . Pereira is an expert on comedies as ¨¨Rose sauce¨, Why do they call it love when they mean sex ?¨, ¨Mouth to mouth¨ , "All Men Are the Same" , though he also has made some drama as ¨The hanged man¨ and ¨Between your legs¨ . His latest projects, however, tanked as "Off Key" starred by an American-all star cast but was a failure both economically and artistically or simply didn't deliver as "Atrévete y Verás" . Nowadays , he directs TV chapters as ¨Gran Reserva¨ and ¨Cheers¨ series .

This started as something curious to watch, something light. Well that changed almost imperceptibly as I was drawn into the film and the story.

In a way it's a typical story line, yet not so typical as so few people have experienced what happens to the characters. The emotional levels really pull you up and down as the movie explores the idea of true love vs. lust and romance vs. marriage. Also exploring ideas about getting what you want in life materially and career and classes of society and how those intertwine with attraction and love.

The music was also very moving, making the emotions that much stronger. I'm a man and yet it made me laugh and cry ... making me think back to events in my own life.

Life can be so simple and pure if we want it to be .... but is that boring?

I saw this film as part of a series while I was going to school in Spain. Spanish films tend be, for the most part, confusing, unsatisfying, and obviously low-budget. _El amor perjudica seriamente la salud_ is none of these things. The performances are absolutely outstanding (with a very notable early Penelope Cruz role) and the story is at times screamingly hilarious. At others, it is devastatingly sad. It has the wonderful quality of seeming to be a cute little romantic comedy that actually evolves into a complex, finely tuned film that can easily become the topic of a night's conversation after the film. I've not yet seen it in English, but I'm doing all in my power to find it here in the United States. Truly, truly excellent.

After a well-handled and intriguing light-comedy scene at a reception for the King of Spain, this film returns us to that moment through a thirty-year-long flashback told through numerous rather distinct scenes, each striving toward another amorous turn of triumph in the enduring attraction of the two main characters. The quality of those triumphs matures over time, and in each we confront, to varying degrees, light suspense, nostalgia and humor. The dialogue is at times hilarious - quick turns of phrases, clashes of word choice with social surroundings, etc., but of course understanding the Spanish is at times essential for full comic appreciation.

In the first half of the film occurs a short sequence of rapid-fire madcap stunts that surprise and work well, but thereafter, slapstick is largely absent through the remainder of the film - or at least till the end. As already hinted, some of the scenes end so successfully, and with a sentiment seeming so perfectly to wrap up the film, that I was momentarily disillusioned to see it continue.

As for acting, the leading actors project wonderfully and are capable of charm and "sutileza" (the English spelling escapes me at the moment). I order zone-2 dvds from Spain and received this along with Cielo Abierto, which I rate higher (I like Albaladejo's work). Yet I give this a 7-rating. With many films I can envision how I might reorder or change the work - with El amor perjudica seriamente la salud, I find the basic plot extremely challenging - yet when it did end, all in my family left the room smiling and laughing. There is no graphic sex, and whatever violence that occurs is comic. The language is non-offensive, at least to Spanish sensitivities. Probably my favorite film with a plot vaguely-vaguely similar to this one is Avanti, with Jack Lemmon.