(Rated R, 110 mins.)
For anyone who ever thought a woman who can’t speak is a man’s dream come true comes this nominee for best foreign film of two women in unusual circumstances and how the unexpected men in their lives deal with it. Alicia (Leonor Watling), a dancer, has an admirer in her neighbor across the street, a male nurse named Benigno (Javier Camara), while Marco (Dario Grandinetti) is smitten with the female bullfighter Lydia (Rosario Flores). When unexpected tragedy puts both women into a coma, the two men bond across a hospital hallway. Benigno, who becomes Alicia’s daily caretaker, finds fulfillment in ‘talking to her’, while Marco can’t bring himself to accept the situation. The flawlessly filmed, provocative and beautiful movie proves what men have known for years: Women are a mystery. But when they’re comatose, the mystery deepens, and for the men trying to penetrate it, obsession and fascination can get out of control – climaxing, in this case, in an unanticipated ending. (Spanish with sub-titles)
