La Buena Estrella
Encyclopedia
La Buena Estrella is a 1997
Spanish film
directed by Ricardo Franco
and starring Antonio Resines
, Jordi Mollá
and Maribel Verdú
. Critically acclaimed, the film won five Goya Awards
: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor (Antonio Resines), Best Original script and Best Original Music. Ricardo Franco made just one more film; he died of a heart attack in 1998.
After knowing that Daniel is now in jail, Rafael proposes to Marina to take care of her and the baby. She gladly accepts his offer but warns him that Daniel sooner o later will come back and then she would not know what to do. Marina and Rafael both grab the possibility to fulfill the impossible dream they once had to form a family.
Rafael treats the troubled Marina with kindness and she responds by proving that there is more than one way to be a man and to experience love. In this way, the two find healing and happiness raising Marina's daughter, Estrella, that Rafael recognizes as his own.
Years later, their happiness is threatened by the sudden return of Daniel, fresh out of prison. He knocks on the door one night, beaten and bleeding, just as Marina arrived years ago. He only wants a place to live. Though he knows that Marina has strong, unresolved feelings for Daniel, Rafael does not want to lose her and reluctantly allows Daniel to stay for a few days that become weeks. With only lifetimes of strife in common, the three lonely, disaffected adults thus form an uneasy family.
Marina is reluctant to be left alone with Daniel, is not he who she does not trust but her own feelings. Rafael to see her reaction goes to his sister house in the countryside, leaving the other two alone. Rafael comes back soon unexpectedly finding Marina and Daniel together in bed. He initially wants them to leave but finally comes to accept an uncommon arrangement and the three of them remain together with their daughter forming an uneasy family. Daniel, who passes as Marina’s brother, helps Rafael in the Butcher’s shop and settles in a family life for a while. He finally leaves as Marina has said the he would do eventually.
Nevertheless, not much later he is in trouble and Marina leaves to follow him. Rafael is now alone to take care of Estrella, the daughter.
Time has gone by and watching the T.V news Rafael finds out that Daniel has been involved in a robbery with a band of criminals and is once again in jail. Marina, then, comes back home, she is pregnant again and they have a second daughter.
Rafael visits Daniel in jail; between them has finally grown appreciation and understanding. Daniel feels defeated, the lucky star that he thought he had has left him. He was raped in prison and is now seriously ill.
Daniel's condition is so bad that he is release from jail to spend his remaining days home. He is grateful that now he has a place to go: the home form with Rafael, Marina and their two daughters. Daniel's suffering is unbearable and he begs Marina to help him die, unwillingly she shoots him to release him from his misery. Marina dies before being charged with the murder. Rafael is now alone to take care of the daughters.
, who plays the gentle butcher, is a Spanish actor famous for his roles mostly in comedies. For his dramatric turn in la Buena Estrella he won the Goya Award as best actor over Jordi Mollá, also nominated.
The role of Marina is played by Maribel Verdú
, an actress famous in Spain for her role of Trini in Vicente Aranda
’s Amantes. La Buena Estrella represents her artistic culmen, she was nominated for her role in this film as a leading actress in the Goya Awards
. She is better known internationally for the films Y tu mamá también
and Pan's Labyrinth
.
The most harrowing role in La Buena Estrella, belongs to Jordi Mollá
who plays the handsome petty criminal Daniel. An actor, director, painter and a writer, Jordi Mollá first received acclaim in Bigas Luna's "Jamón, Jamón
", in 1992. As an actor, Mollà is most recognized in the United States for his role as Diego Delgado in Blow (Ted Demme, 2001), his debut Hollywood film since then he has made four more films in hollywood. including Bad Boys II
2003, The Alamo
2004 and Elizabeth: The Golden Age
for best actor and Maribel Verdú
for best actress. La Buena Estrella won over Secretos del corazón, a film that was ultimately Spain's candidate to the Oscar
where it was among that year's nominees. Ricardo Franco
, the director, left his next film unfinished, dying of a heart attack only one year after the release of La Buena Estrella, his best regarded work.
Although Antonio Resines
won the best actor award, many found Jordi Mollá's performance in the film more compelling. Some critics found the story too grim, the euthanasia issue controversial, and the erotic scenes out of place in a film characterized by its sobriety.
1997 in film
-Events:* The original Star Wars trilogy's Special Editions are released.* Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.* Titanic becomes the first film to gross US$1,000,000,000 at the box office making it the highest grossing film in history until Avatar broke the record in 2010.*...
Spanish film
Cinema of Spain
The art of motion-picture making within the nation of Spain or by Spanish filmmakers abroad is collectively known as Spanish Cinema.In recent years, Spanish cinema has achieved high marks of recognition as a result of its creative and technical excellence...
directed by Ricardo Franco
Ricardo Franco
Ricardo Franco was a Spanish screenwriter and film director.- Biography :Nephew of Jesús Franco. He died at 49 years old when he filmed Lágrimas negras....
and starring Antonio Resines
Antonio Resines
Antonio Fernández Resines is an award-winning Spanish film and television actor.- Selected filmography :*La dama boba .*Otros días vendrán ....
, Jordi Mollá
Jordi Mollà
Jordi Mollá Perales is a Spanish actor, filmmaker, writer and artist.Mollà's artwork is represented in the Carmen De la Guerra Gallery in Madrid, Picasso Mio Gallery in Madrid and Barcelona and Cold Creation Gallery in Barcelona...
and Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú is a Spanish actress. She is known to English-speaking audiences for playing Luisa in the 2001 film Y tu mamá también and Mercedes in Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth. In Spain she is known for films such as Belle Époque, Tetro, and Huevos de oro.Verdú was born María...
. Critically acclaimed, the film won five Goya Awards
Goya Awards
The Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor (Antonio Resines), Best Original script and Best Original Music. Ricardo Franco made just one more film; he died of a heart attack in 1998.
Plot
Rafael is a kind, good-hearted butcher. He has a lonely life after accidentally castrating himself while cutting meat several years before, but he longs to have a family life, a dream that seems unattainable for him. One early morning when he is driving his truck to his butcher’s shop, he sees a young man assaulting a woman. Rafael cannot help but intervene and jumps out of his vehicle to help her. Taking pity on the girl, he takes her to his home. Her name is Marina and the man who was beating her was her boyfriend, Daniel. Marina, nicknamed One-Eye (for she lost one eye in a childhood accident), tells Rafael how she and Daniel grew up together in a hostile environment in an orphanage, where she was left abandoned by her father. Marina feels attach to Daniel, as they do not have anybody else. They have had a hard life on the streets, and now that she is pregnant by him, she is adamant not only to have the baby, that Daniel does not want , but she would like to offer the baby the family life, she never had.After knowing that Daniel is now in jail, Rafael proposes to Marina to take care of her and the baby. She gladly accepts his offer but warns him that Daniel sooner o later will come back and then she would not know what to do. Marina and Rafael both grab the possibility to fulfill the impossible dream they once had to form a family.
Rafael treats the troubled Marina with kindness and she responds by proving that there is more than one way to be a man and to experience love. In this way, the two find healing and happiness raising Marina's daughter, Estrella, that Rafael recognizes as his own.
Years later, their happiness is threatened by the sudden return of Daniel, fresh out of prison. He knocks on the door one night, beaten and bleeding, just as Marina arrived years ago. He only wants a place to live. Though he knows that Marina has strong, unresolved feelings for Daniel, Rafael does not want to lose her and reluctantly allows Daniel to stay for a few days that become weeks. With only lifetimes of strife in common, the three lonely, disaffected adults thus form an uneasy family.
Marina is reluctant to be left alone with Daniel, is not he who she does not trust but her own feelings. Rafael to see her reaction goes to his sister house in the countryside, leaving the other two alone. Rafael comes back soon unexpectedly finding Marina and Daniel together in bed. He initially wants them to leave but finally comes to accept an uncommon arrangement and the three of them remain together with their daughter forming an uneasy family. Daniel, who passes as Marina’s brother, helps Rafael in the Butcher’s shop and settles in a family life for a while. He finally leaves as Marina has said the he would do eventually.
Nevertheless, not much later he is in trouble and Marina leaves to follow him. Rafael is now alone to take care of Estrella, the daughter.
Time has gone by and watching the T.V news Rafael finds out that Daniel has been involved in a robbery with a band of criminals and is once again in jail. Marina, then, comes back home, she is pregnant again and they have a second daughter.
Rafael visits Daniel in jail; between them has finally grown appreciation and understanding. Daniel feels defeated, the lucky star that he thought he had has left him. He was raped in prison and is now seriously ill.
Daniel's condition is so bad that he is release from jail to spend his remaining days home. He is grateful that now he has a place to go: the home form with Rafael, Marina and their two daughters. Daniel's suffering is unbearable and he begs Marina to help him die, unwillingly she shoots him to release him from his misery. Marina dies before being charged with the murder. Rafael is now alone to take care of the daughters.
Cast
La Buena Estrella centers on the three leads. Antonio ResinesAntonio Resines
Antonio Fernández Resines is an award-winning Spanish film and television actor.- Selected filmography :*La dama boba .*Otros días vendrán ....
, who plays the gentle butcher, is a Spanish actor famous for his roles mostly in comedies. For his dramatric turn in la Buena Estrella he won the Goya Award as best actor over Jordi Mollá, also nominated.
The role of Marina is played by Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú is a Spanish actress. She is known to English-speaking audiences for playing Luisa in the 2001 film Y tu mamá también and Mercedes in Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth. In Spain she is known for films such as Belle Époque, Tetro, and Huevos de oro.Verdú was born María...
, an actress famous in Spain for her role of Trini in Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
’s Amantes. La Buena Estrella represents her artistic culmen, she was nominated for her role in this film as a leading actress in the Goya Awards
Goya Awards
The Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
. She is better known internationally for the films Y tu mamá también
Y tu mamá también
Y tu mamá también is a 2001 Mexican comedy-drama film directed by Alfonso Cuarón, and co-written by Cuarón and his brother Carlos. The film is a coming-of-age story about two teenage boys taking a road trip with a woman in her late twenties; it stars Mexican actors Diego Luna and Gael García...
and Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth is a 2006 Spanish Spanish-language dark fantasy film, written and directed by Mexican film-maker Guillermo del Toro. It was produced and distributed by the Mexican film company Esperanto Films...
.
The most harrowing role in La Buena Estrella, belongs to Jordi Mollá
Jordi Mollà
Jordi Mollá Perales is a Spanish actor, filmmaker, writer and artist.Mollà's artwork is represented in the Carmen De la Guerra Gallery in Madrid, Picasso Mio Gallery in Madrid and Barcelona and Cold Creation Gallery in Barcelona...
who plays the handsome petty criminal Daniel. An actor, director, painter and a writer, Jordi Mollá first received acclaim in Bigas Luna's "Jamón, Jamón
Jamón, jamón
Jamón, jamón is a 1992 Spanish comedy/drama film directed by Bigas Luna and starring Javier Bardem, Jordi Mollà and Penélope Cruz in her debut film. It centres around a young woman named Silvia played by Cruz. According to LoveFilm, the film is bursting with sexual energy and twisted romantic...
", in 1992. As an actor, Mollà is most recognized in the United States for his role as Diego Delgado in Blow (Ted Demme, 2001), his debut Hollywood film since then he has made four more films in hollywood. including Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II
Bad Boys II is a 2003 action/comedy film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. It is a sequel to the 1995 film Bad Boys. The film is about two police detectives investigating the flow of ecstasy into Miami...
2003, The Alamo
The Alamo (2004 film)
The Alamo is a 2004 American war film about the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. The film was directed by Texan John Lee Hancock, produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, and Mark Johnson, and distributed by Touchstone Pictures....
2004 and Elizabeth: The Golden Age
- Antonio ResinesAntonio ResinesAntonio Fernández Resines is an award-winning Spanish film and television actor.- Selected filmography :*La dama boba .*Otros días vendrán ....
- Rafael - Jordi MolláJordi MollàJordi Mollá Perales is a Spanish actor, filmmaker, writer and artist.Mollà's artwork is represented in the Carmen De la Guerra Gallery in Madrid, Picasso Mio Gallery in Madrid and Barcelona and Cold Creation Gallery in Barcelona...
- Daniel - Maribel VerdúMaribel VerdúMaribel Verdú is a Spanish actress. She is known to English-speaking audiences for playing Luisa in the 2001 film Y tu mamá también and Mercedes in Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth. In Spain she is known for films such as Belle Époque, Tetro, and Huevos de oro.Verdú was born María...
- Marina - Elvira Miguez - Ana Maria
- Ramón Barea - Paco
- Sonia Cuellar - Estrella
Themes
La Buena Estella is a dramatic intimist film about love, abandonment, solitude and ultimate connection. It was based on a real life story taken from an actual crime and developed by the producer Pedro Costa.Reception
La Buena Estrella was well received by critics and audiences. It won Goyas for best film, best actor, best director and best original score, and was nominated for 4 others, including Jordi MollàJordi Mollà
Jordi Mollá Perales is a Spanish actor, filmmaker, writer and artist.Mollà's artwork is represented in the Carmen De la Guerra Gallery in Madrid, Picasso Mio Gallery in Madrid and Barcelona and Cold Creation Gallery in Barcelona...
for best actor and Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú
Maribel Verdú is a Spanish actress. She is known to English-speaking audiences for playing Luisa in the 2001 film Y tu mamá también and Mercedes in Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth. In Spain she is known for films such as Belle Époque, Tetro, and Huevos de oro.Verdú was born María...
for best actress. La Buena Estrella won over Secretos del corazón, a film that was ultimately Spain's candidate to the Oscar
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
where it was among that year's nominees. Ricardo Franco
Ricardo Franco
Ricardo Franco was a Spanish screenwriter and film director.- Biography :Nephew of Jesús Franco. He died at 49 years old when he filmed Lágrimas negras....
, the director, left his next film unfinished, dying of a heart attack only one year after the release of La Buena Estrella, his best regarded work.
Although Antonio Resines
Antonio Resines
Antonio Fernández Resines is an award-winning Spanish film and television actor.- Selected filmography :*La dama boba .*Otros días vendrán ....
won the best actor award, many found Jordi Mollá's performance in the film more compelling. Some critics found the story too grim, the euthanasia issue controversial, and the erotic scenes out of place in a film characterized by its sobriety.
Awards
- Five Goya AwardsGoya AwardsThe Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
: Best Film and Best Director, Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Music. (1997) - Fotogramas de Plata , Best Film, 1997
- Cannes Film Festival1997 Cannes Film Festival-Jury:*Isabelle Adjani *Gong Li *Mira Sorvino *Paul Auster *Tim Burton *Luc Bondy *Patrick Dupond *Mike Leigh *Nanni Moretti *Michael Ondaatje -Feature film competition:...
, Prize of the Ecumenical Jury - Special Mention - San Diego International Film Festival, Best Film, 1998
- Ondas Awards, Best Director, Best Actor tied (Jordi Mollá and Antonio Resines )
- Mar del Plata Film Festival, Best director, Best Actor tied ( Antonio Resines, Jordi Mollá)