1. Azúcar Amarga (Bitter Sugar)
(1996) (Cuba) 75 minutes. Unrated. Gustavo is a young Havana Communist
who believes in the revolution; he hopes for a scholarship to study
aeronautical engineering in Prague. But his faith in the new Cuba
is tested. When his brother Bobby takes a shocking step of revolt
and Gustavo is refused service at a foreigners-only bar, the contradictions
in his resolve to become a "new man" push him to the breaking
point.
2. Camila (1984) (Argentina,
Spain) 107 minutes. Rated R. In Buenos Aires of the 1840's, a young
Jesuit and a wealthy socialite fall in love and begin a torrid affair.
They escape from the city, and, in disguise, set up house in a village,
assuming they are safe and beyond the cares of anyone. However, both
the church and Camila's family are enraged, vowing to hunt down the
lovers for a capital crime. Based on a true story.
3. El abuelo (The Grandfather)
(1998) (Spain) 151 minutes. Rated PG. An elderly man returns to Spain
after visiting the US during the Gold Rush and losing his fortune.
He returns because his son has died leaving two daughters, and the
son has left a note stating that one of the two is a bastard child.
The grandfather hopes to find out which is his true granddaughter.
4. El hijo de la novia (The Son
of the Bride) (2001) (Argentina) 123 minutes. Rated R for
language. At age 42, Rafael Belvedere is having a crisis. He lives
in the shadow of his father, he feels guilty about rarely visiting
his aging mother, his ex-wife says he doesn't spend enough time with
their daughter and he has yet to make a commitment to his girlfriend.
At his lowest point, a minor heart attack reunites him with Juan Carlos,
a childhood friend, who helps Rafael to reconstruct his past and look
at the present in new ways.
5. El Mariachi (1992) (Mexico,
USA) 81 minutes. Rated R. El Mariachi just wants to play his guitar
and carry on the family tradition. Unfortunately, the town he tries
to find work in has another visitor...a killer who carries his guns
in a guitar case. The drug lord and his henchmen mistake El Mariachi
for the killer, Azul, and chase him around town trying to kill him
and get his guitar case.
6. Nueve Reinas (Nine Queens)
(2000) (Argentina) Rated R for language. Two con artists try to swindle
a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps
(the "nine queens").
7. Diarios de motocicleta (Motorcycle
Diaries) (2004) (USA, Argentina) Rated R. An adaptation of
the journal written by Ernesto "Che" Guevara when he was
23 years old. He and his friend Alberto Granado are typical college
students who, seeking fun and adventure before graduation, decide
to travel across Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Peru in order to do
their medical residency at a leper colony. The two best friends start
off with the same goals and aspirations, but by the time the film
is over, it's clear what each man's destiny has become.
8. Maria Full of Grace
(2004) (USA, Colombia) Rated R for drug content and language. The
pellets contain heroin. Each weighs 10 grams. Each is 4.2 cm long
and 1.4 cm wide. And they're on their way to New York in the stomach
of a 17-year-old girl.
