La vida que te espera

Rural tragedy set in wonderful landscapes and starred by a nowadays Spanish all-star-cast such as Luis Tosar , Marta Etura , Clara Lago , Juan Diego and being compellingly directed by Manuel Gutierrez Aragon . It is set in Valle De Pas , next to Torrelavega , Cantabria , North of Spain ; there farmers are being forced to limit their milk production in order to satisfy the E.U. (European Union) regulation . Long years of hatred and festering resentments among two families facing each other and terminating into a burst of violence . There takes place a struggle over the prize milk cow and it leaves a farmer dead and another fearful of detention . A countryman lives with his two daughters (Marta Etura , Clara Lago) along with their cows and farm animals . The farmer called Gildo (Juan Diego) and his daughter Val (Marta Etura) scheme to keep the cause of death quiet , but tensions arise when Val falls in love with the dead farmer's son, Rai (Luis Tosar) , a hairdresser in the city who has returned to Valley Pas to the funeral . At the end takes places a contest at Torrelavega livestock market and a final twist of unexpected consequences .

This interesting film deals with a tragedy of human emotions pushed over the edge . This is an intense rural drama crammed with social habits , intrigue , family relationship and a love story . Its style is pretty much sour , dry and realistic as well in the atmosphere as in the fresh dialog . This film describes the rural life , including a character studio of local people and an enjoyable love story among a young couple . Well played by known and notorious actors such as Luis Tosar as a hairdresser estranged from his father attempting to find out the truth , Marta Etura as the young countrywoman who follows faithfully orders her father ; both of whom were a happy couple in real life , though recently their lovely relationship has been broken . And Clara Lago as a teen of lurid imagination and special mention to veteran Juan Diego as a grumpy farmer who attempts to protect his daughter . Good production design by prestigious Felix Murcia and correctly reflecting the atmosphere by that time and location . Splendid photography with juicy atmosphere by Gonzalo Berridi . Being appropriately filmed on location , showing one colorful filming from Valle De Pas , Cantabria , North of Spain .

The motion picture perfectly produced by magnificent producer Gerardo Herrero was rightly directed by Manuel Gutierrez Aragon , a good Spanish movies director . Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón was born on January 2, 1942 in Torrelavega, Cantabria, where uses to set most of films , including Valley Pas . He is a writer and director, known for Habla, Mudita (1973), Camada Negra (1977) , Maravillas (1981) , Demonios en el Jardín (1982) , Feroz (1984) , Visionarios (2001) , Todos Estamos Invitados (2008) . He began working in cinema in 1973 when he filmed ¨Habla Mudita ¨ , this debut feature by acclaimed Spanish director deals with a strange relationship between a mature men and a mute villager and also set in rural country from Valley Pas. Manuel Gutierrez is a well recognized filmmaker both nationally and internationally, and in proof of it he won many prizes among which there are the following ones : David di Donatello Awards , Moscow International Film Festival , and San Sebastian International Festival award to ¨Demonios en Jardin¨ , Goya Awards 1987 to ¨La Mitad del Cielo¨ , Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Spain and Berlin Internation Festival 1996 to ¨Rey del Rio¨ , Biarritz International Festival awards and Goyas 2003 to ¨Caballero Don Quijote¨ , among others .

A well told story with interesting questions about truth, redemption and sacrifice.

The plot is beautifully told and the scenery lovely.

I enjoyed this very much.

Valle del Pas, Cantabria (Northern Spain). Present day. Tough times for the cattle farmers, they're being forced to limit their milk production in order to satisfy the European Union regulations. Gildo (Juan Diego) is one of those cattle farmers, he lives in some little village from the Valle del Pas with his to daughters. An old-fashioned widow-man who works from dawn to dusk in order to keep his little business alive. Her daughters, they don't want to live that way anymore, especially the youngest one (she likes to go to the disco, to be trendy...). And so goes their lives, till a Gildo's colleague is murdered (By Gildo himself, or so it would seem) and the son of that man (Luis Tosar) comes to the village to take care of his father's farm.

Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón has directed up to 20 movies, and for me is such an irregular filmmaker and writer. He's made some remarkable movies such as "Habla, Mudita", and he wrote the script (together with JL Borau) for that masterpiece called "Furtivos". But, though his works are usually very good filmed, so sober, and he's a good actor's director, there's always a lack of something in them. In "La Vida Que Te Espera" we find the rural enviroment (that he's portraited in many movies) perfectly prhotographied, Valle del Pas' landscapes are just espectacular. Juan Diego's performance is simply outstanding (he's one of the best spanish actors alive), and Tosar is just Ok in the kind of character he usually plays very skillfully (they could've had a better actress instead of Marta Eturra -typical young actress with nothing to say-). But the script... I think that Aragón fails to recreate the hardness that it should've required that kind of story, the roughness of it all (he achieves it in many sequences, but it's not enough: we're talking about people which lives isolated in the middle of a mountain, just like Heidi and his goddman grandpa). He also does not measure the rhythm that well: the passages of more intensity occurs a long time before the end of the movie: there's sort of a fake-ending, and the last 20 minutes are a little weary, explaining things that we all know by that moment.

Anyway, Juan Diego's performance justifies the viewing. In he'd born in Texas or in California he'd be one of the most well-known actors in the world.

My Rate: 6.5/10

Director Manuel Gutierrez Aragon presents a rural drama that takes place in the mountains of Cantabria, in Northern Spain. This film, part of the annual presentation of Spanish cinema, is a picture with a lot of ambition. Were it not for this festival, Spanish films, such as this one, would not have been seen in this city because this type of cinema is not commercial and there is no market for it.

On the one hand, the movie shows the hard life these peasants lead in a remote and desolate region. Also, the director wants to make a statement about how progress in the country, being now part of the European Community, penalizes the small farmers that have eked a life from their cows and agriculture for ages.

If you haven't seen the film, please stop reading now.

The new developments in the country wreak havoc for Gildo, and his neighbor Severo. Both men are the victims of a system that condemns them both for producing more milk than it's allowed by the ECU. They don't see eye to eye; there is resentment and bad blood between them. When Gildo sends a young calf to his neighbor, Severo takes offense, taking his daughter Val prisoner, against her will, for nothing this young woman has done. There is confrontation between Severo, Val and Gildo, in which the first one dies.

This brings Rai, the estranged son of Severo back to the funeral and to put his father's things in order before returning to the small town, where he works as a hair dresser. Rai falls for Val, but the fact remains that this son, as well as the rest of the town, feels that Celso killed Severo. Rai falls hard for Val. Their romance goes against Gildo's wishes who feels the young man will see who the real culprit is.

The movie is more approachable than some of the other movies of this director, who can please an audience, as well as repulse the viewer.

Juan Diego is Gildo, who is totally convincing as Gildo. The young actress Marta Etura, is Val, the daughter who must work with the father to make a go of their meager existence. Ms. Etura bears an uncanny resemblance to Holly Hunter. Luis Tosar is Rai, who gives a controlled performance.

The views of the hills of Cantabria is breathtaking. The green mountains come alive in this movie. Mr. Gutierrez Aragon gives us a slice of life among these peasants whose lives have not changed for centuries.

Two Cantabrian dairy farmers have a longstanding disagreement over a debt one owes to the other. Juan Diego plays Gildo, who owes Severo (Celso Bugallo) and tries to pay him off with a calf from his beautiful milk cow Vanessa, which is brought over to his farm by his older daughter Val (Marta Etura). However, in the current economic situation, calves aren't worth what they used to be, so Severo kidnaps Val for ransom, tying up her hands and locking her in his barn after he drags her through the mud. This must be the old fashioned way to settle debts. Gildo has to rescue Val from Severo, and Severo gets killed, bringing in the police. He tells Val to dress up and sends her and her younger sister Genia (spicy Clara Lago) off to a dance in town where he knows that Rai (Luis Tosar), Severo's son who is a hairdresser and has long since left the rural way of life, will be, hoping that Val will seduce him and thus remove any suspicion the police might have about who killed Severo. It's a clever story to follow, though I found the ending to be frustrating, as everyone in the town who was at Severo's funeral knew that he had it coming, and so does the viewer. Nonetheless, Gildo's story and character make this more than worthwhile to see, as well as the great settings.