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		Buena Vista Social Club (1999)  Our avarage rating: 4.5 In 1996, composer, producer, and guitar legend Ry Cooder entered Egrem Studios in Havana with the forgotten greats of Cuban music, many of them in their 60s and 70s, some of them long since retired. The resulting album, Buena Vista Social Club, became a Grammy-winning international bestseller. When Cooder returned to Havana in 1998 to record a solo album by 72-year-old vocalist Ibrahim Ferrer, filmmaker Wim Wenders was on hand to document the occasion. Wenders splits the film between portraits of the performers, who tell their stories directly to the camera as they wander the streets and neighborhoods of Havana, and a celebration of the music heard in performance scenes in the studio, in their first concert in Amsterdam, and in their second and final concert at Carnegie Hall. The songs are too often cut short in this fashion, but Buena Vista Social Club is not a concert film. Wenders weaves the artist biographies with a glimpse of modern Cuba remembering its past, capturing a lost culture in music that is suddenly, unexpectedly revived for audiences in Havana and around the world. Wenders makes his presence practically invisible, as if his directorial flourishes or off-screen narration might deflect attention from the artists, who do a fine job of telling their own stories through interviews and music. It's a loving portrait of a master class in Cuban music, with a vital cast of aging performers whose energy and passion belie their years. --Sean Axmaker Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		Guantanamera (1997) - Dubbed in Spanish - English subtitles  Our avarage rating: 4.7 This movie is a comedy that depicts everyday life for Cubans and their struggles with the overly-bureaucratic, centrally-planned economy. Its a story about a funeral procession of sorts that begins in Guantanamo and ends up in Havana. With a few mishaps along the route, the love story between Candido and Yoyita and the other one between Gina and Mariano does a great job of bringing it all together.  Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		Like Water for Chocolate (1993) - Dubbed in Spanish  Our avarage rating: 4.9 Expect to be very hungry (and perhaps amorous) after watching this contemporary classic in the small genre of food movies that includes Babette's Feast and Big Night. Director Alfonso Arau (A Walk in the Clouds), adapting a novel by his former wife, Laura Esquivel, tells the story of a young woman (Lumi Cavazos) who learns to suppress her passions under the eye of a stern mother, but channels them into her cooking. The result is a steady stream of cuisine so delicious as to be an almost erotic experience for those lucky enough to have a bite. The film's quotient of magic realism feels a little stock, but the story line is good and Arau's affinity for the sensuality of food (and of nature) is sublime. You might want to rush off to a good Mexican restaurant afterward, but that's a good thing. --Tom Keogh -- Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		All About My Mother (1999) - English subtitles   Richmond Our avarage rating: 4.4 After her son is killed in an accident, Manuela (Cecilia Roth) leaves Madrid for her old haunts in Barcelona. She reconnects with an old friend, a pre-op transsexual prostitute named La Agrado (Antonia San Juan), who introduces her to Rosa (Penélope Cruz), a young nun who turns out to be pregnant. Meanwhile, Manuela becomes a personal assistant for Huma Rojo (Marisa Paredes), an actress currently playing Blanche DuBois in a production of A Streetcar Named Desire. All About My Mother traces the delicate web of friendship and loss that binds these women together. The movie is dedicated to the actresses of the world, so it's not surprising that all the performances are superb. Roth in particular anchors All About My Mother with compassion and generosity. But fans of writer-director Pedro Almodóvar needn't fret--as always, Almodóvar's work undermines conventional notions of sexual identity and embraces all human possibilities with bright colors and melodramatic plotting. However, All About My Mother approaches its twists and turns with a broader emotional scope than most of Almodóvar's work; even the more extravagant aspects of the story are presented quietly, to allow the sadness of life to be as present as the irrepressible vitality of the characters. Almodóvar embraces pettiness, jealousy, and grief as much as kindness, courage, and outrageousness, and the movie is the richer for it. --Bret Fetze-- Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
no image		Cats and Dogs (2001) - Dubbed in Spanish - Spanish subtitles  Our avarage rating: 4.0 How can you hate a movie that features ninja Siamese cats wreaking havoc with their kung fu prowess? That's one of the highlights in Cats & Dogs, an effects-laden family film that mystifies cat fanciers by casting dogs as the undisputed heroes in all-out warfare with nefarious felines. Hidden headquarters and high-tech gadgets are featured on both sides of this age-old battle. On the feline side, the longhaired Persian Mr. Tinkles (voice of Sean Hayes) plots to sabotage the efforts of Professor Brody (Jeff Goldblum) to discover a cure for human allergies to dogs. On the canine side, stalwart shepherd Butch (voice of Alec Baldwin) trains the mistakenly recruited beagle puppy Lou (voice of Tobey Maguire) to foil Mr. Tinkles's scheme--a mission that begins when Mrs. Brody (Elizabeth Perkins) adopts Lou for her son Scott (Alexander Pollock). Using combinations of live animals, animatronic puppets, and digital wizardry, Cats & Dogs has just enough imagination to match its effects, climaxing with a feline global-domination scheme involving mice sprayed with chemicals that will make all humans allergic to dogs. Goldblum and Perkins gamely play second fiddles to this menagerie of mayhem, and as madcap "realism" gives way to cartoonish fantasy, the movie escalates into utter chaos, burdened by lame jokes but highlighted by a furry supporting cast including a Saluki hound (voice of Susan Sarandon), a shaggy sheepdog (voice of Michael Clarke Duncan), and a Chinese hairless techno-geek named Peek (voice of Joe Pantoliano). Though never as charming as the Babe movies, Cats & Dogs is harmless fun--especially for dog lovers. --Jeff Shannon --  Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		Belle Epoque (1994) - English subtitles  Our avarage rating: 4.2 Rarely will I view a movie more than once. I've seen this one twice now. Anyone who has been to Spain will see the character and spirit of the Spanish represented by the personalities of the four beautiful sisters, their father, mother, and of course the deserter from the army. The opening scene with the two Guardia Civil definitely makes a statement about the mind-set in Spain of 1931. Trueba brings it all together to give us this wonderfully humorous, sexy, interesting, and altogether pleasing film. Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		Midaq Alley (1998) - Dubbed in Spanish - English subtitles  Our avarage rating: 4.7 An excellent drama offset by comedic situations and some great acting. "Midaq Alley" captures life around a neighborhood in Mexico City complete with intertwined lives and surprising tangles in the web of life. The story has a soap opera quality but is much more grand and much more realistic than the sappy soaps. The movie is a peek into the trials and tribulations of ordinary lives with at times extraordinary circumstances. It covers a variety of contemporary issues addressing life in the DF today. It is very difficult to explain other than to say that it is well worth viewing to draw your own conclusions. There is a lot going on in the story. The acting is superb and very gritty, giving the movie a sense of authenticity. There is a whole cast of characters that have their roles big and small but all lend credence to the movie. One of my favorite characters in the movie is a man known as "el poeta". During the domino games at the local bar he sites various authors to illustrate his opinions on everything from the game itself to the neighborhood gossip. He is just so cool with his subtle commentary. Another fine performance is put in for the character "Don Ru" who is one of the hubs of the story that ties several characters together. He is very credible given the unusual circumstances. Two of the best performances are put in by Bruno Bichir, as Abel, the love interest of the oh, so sexy Salma Hayek, as Alma. Abel is a sort of naive, yet street smart kid who looks like a younger Andy Garcia. He plays his role perfectly. The dialogue is as youngsters talk to themselves complete with "buey" following every sentence. The movie has it's share of foul language but it doesn't sound nasty, it comes out just as Mexicans often talk. It isn't anything dirty or vile it is just colorful street talk. Now for the real reason for every man to watch this movie-Salma Hayek, what a goddess! She is just so beautiful that it matters not what she would say or do because most of us men don't care. Seriously though, she can act and does so quite convincingly. The setting is beautiful and very close to life. The situations are all to real and superbly presented in such a manner that will have you laughing and sad, happy and disappointed, feeling tragic and triumphant, much like in real life. This is an excellent movie, a little long, but well worth the viewing experience. This is Mexican cinema at it's finest. Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		High Heels (1991) - English subtitles  Our avarage rating: 4.2 So-so Almodóvar concoction about the conflicts and intricacies in the relationship between a famous, egocentric actress (Paredes) and her TV newscaster daughter (Abril). First half is vintage Almodóvar, but film becomes a bit more serious (than necessary) as it unfolds. Still, there are plenty of the director's outlandish touches--check out that women's prison--and also some interesting views on celebrity. Leading man Bosé (son of Italian actress Lucia Bosé and Spanish bullfighter Luis Miguel Dominguin) is a pop music star in Spain. Copyright© Leonard Maltin, 1998-2001 Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!
		Strawberry & Chocolate (1995) - Dubbed in Spanish - English subtitles Our avarage rating: 4.9 This charming Cuban film details the unusual relationship between the flamboyant, educated Diego (Jorge Perugorría) and the young, homophobic, pro-Revolution David (Vladimir Cruz). Miserable at being dumped by his girlfriend, David at first spurns the attentions of Diego; however, at the prompting of his Communist roommate, Miguel (Francisco Gattorno), he cultivates an acquaintanceship with Diego in order to investigate his liberal leanings. Of course, Diego's cultured ways prove fascinating to the younger man and a true friendship grows. Add the slightly crazy neighbor Nancy (Mirta Ibarra), who frequently attempts suicide, as romantic fodder for David, and this playful drama becomes a heartwarming film. Disputed in its own country, this film was the first Cuban picture to be nominated for best foreign picture at the Academy Awards. --Jenny Brown-- Our Price | Read reviews | Order now!