La soledad
New Directors
Spain, 2007, 130 minutes
Sat, Apr 26 / 5:45 / PFA / SOLI26P
Tue, Apr 29 / 6:00 / Kabuki / SOLI29K
Thu, May 1 / 9:00 / Kabuki / SOLI01K
Sat, May 3 / 6:30 / Kabuki / SOLI03K
Recently separated, Adela (Sonia Almarcha) leaves her small town in the north of Spain and moves to the big city of Madrid with her one-year-old son. She finds a job and moves into an apartment with Carlos (Lluís Villanueva) and Inés (Miriam Correa). The three roommates become good friends and open up to each other about their personal lives over shared meals and the routine of daily life: family disputes, raising children, coping with finances and buying groceries. Not receiving much help from the child’s troubled father, Adela struggles. Inés’s sister Helena (María Bazán) and Antonia (Petra Martínez), a widow with three daughters, enter the circle of family and acquaintances. Director Jaime Rosales creates a disarmingly naturalistic, nonjudgmental tapestry of people struggling with everyday challenges, a fascinating ecosphere of human behavior, with a camera as still and observant as that of Yasuhiro Ozu and the unusually creative use of a split screen. Consequently, we become so immersed in the problems of this mostly female microcosm that we feel as if we are part of the conversation and emotionally invested in the outcome. One day, the fabric of life is ripped to shreds by an extraordinarily shocking event. Suddenly the threads are broken, and the survivors have to find the strength to take them up again. Solitary Fragments has had a significant impact on a traumatized Spain, winning three 2008 Goya Awards, including Best Film and Best Director.
—Miguel Pendás
U.S. Premiere. Sponsored by Virgin America.