Argentinean Juan Diego Boto’s social drama takes us to Spain for an intense 24 hours from the lives of the less privileged. A lawyer (Louis Tosar) with intense social action runs from morning to night for the needs of others, neglecting his pregnant wife. The mother (Penelope Cruz) is desperate to save her house as the bank is about to throw her family out on the street. An elderly woman is also ready to lose her home, acting as a guarantor for her son, who works part-time.

Botto organizes his entire plot as a continuous battle against time, giving it elements of a thriller that captivates the viewer. Huge – relevant for Greece – the topic of housing auctions is in the spotlight, but not the only one: utilities, where chaos reigns, inhabitants who suddenly lost their dignity, desperate immigrants. Here, of course, there is also compassion and solidarity, often as the only shield against an impersonal automated system that destroys lives.

Botto’s set has a lot of dramatic weight, perhaps too much at times, but it works thanks to the pacing and mainly the performance of the main characters. Penélope Cruz and Luis Tozar are excellent, plunging us right into the harrowing quagmire of their characters.

Bastard ★★½
CINEFIL (2022)
Directed by: Nikos Pastras
Interpretations: Natalia Swift, Zacharias Vela, Aphrodite Kapokakis

The debut feature film of Nikos Pastra, in which the Greek director created a film full of freshness and youth, with a loose structure. Five boys and the same number of girls decide to leave the city, moving to a secluded house in the countryside. There, in communal conditions, they play, fall in love, fight and kiss, above all enjoy their freedom and freedom from all sorts of oppressive rules and social conventions.

Pastras cheerfully leads a group of young actors who are clearly having fun, improvising and experimenting. After all, they all make a film with relatively little coherence and pacing that is nonetheless undeniably charming, with a welcome daring, explosiveness, and even “tricks” that suit young people well.

As the title suggests, the French comedy by Quentin Dupierre (Rubber) combines comedy with fantasy and paradox in a clever script. Alain and Marie buy a beautiful house in the suburbs. The latter, however, has a mysterious tunnel in the basement that essentially works like… a time machine. The couple will now face this unique discovery, its wonderful extensions, and the pitfalls of using it. The passage of time, wear and tear, and the mental insecurities it causes, are the main themes dealt with here, almost always through a comical twist. Men and women, more or less wealthy, deal with specific issues in different ways, having, however, a common denominator of fear. Tunnel detection is of course somewhat “easy” and can be confusing to the less attentive viewer, but it works well enough in an overall light, but not necessarily “light” film.

In modern Russia, there is an action-packed film by Jerome Chall, also based on real events. Diplomat Mathieu (Gilles Lelouch) is assigned to icy Irkutsk, Siberia. However, some seemingly innocent decisions will bring him face to face with the local authorities and especially the powerful FSB, who will uncover a terrible plot against him. Imprisoned and scared, Mathieu must now find a way to escape with the help of a brave woman.

Mermaid ★★
FANTASY (2023)
Directed by: Rob Marshall
Cast: Hayley Bailey, Javier Bardem, Melissa McCarthy.

Continuing its practice of live adaptations of its classic animated films, Disney now introduces the legend of Ariel, played by singer and actress Hailey Bailey. The choice of the latter was discussed a lot due to the color of her skin (!), but in the end it turned out to be the most suitable of all. A young Bailey brings an exotic coolness to his beloved character, beautifully performing film classics in moments (musicals) where even Chicago’s Rob Marshall excels. Further, of course, not so much. Javier Bardem is just tolerable as the strict king-father of Ariel, but the sea kingdom with mermaids is pretty overloaded with special effects.