Review of Backroads

Backroads (1997)
7/10
Entertaining coming-of-age drama/comedy with fine actors , adequate cinematography , sensitive score and professional direction
6 December 2014
Fun Dramedy (comedy/drama) with touches of profanity and full of entertainment , humor and sheer amusement . Amusing Spanish comedy in which two good actors , a veteran Antonio Resines and a fifteen-year-old teen Fernando Ramallo become involved into improbable situations . As a problematic teenager called Felipe (Fernando Ramallo) accompanies his errant as well as troublemaker daddy Lozano (Antonio Resines) travelling around Spain as Madrid , Zaragoza , Girona , always being involved in dark and not very decent business . They undertake an itinerant life , living by means of small swindles and supplies selling . Both of whom trying to make a living from what might be called as simple subsistence . In this coming-of-age story the son begins to understand what his life is . They are joined by gorgeous Paquita (Maribel Verdú) , a type of woman who shows great love for Lozano and his son Felipe . In pursuing their objectives the losers will face a lot of problems . Meanwhile , the peculiar family travels across Spain , throughout several locations until an American base .

This attractive comedy contains emotion , humor , brief drama and amusement . The film moves in fits and starts most of which would be desirable, with more traps the viewer resists any kind, and some moments of enjoyment and others quite a few embarrassing . The flick relies heavily on the continued relationship between father and son , but it doesn't make boring but entertaining . The journey of the protagonists is so repetitive and the most part results to be rich in absurdities and implausibilities . This road movie has a nostalgic feeling dealing with the seventies as when appeared the color TV , Patty Hearst is in the news robbing a bank , strikes in which in protesters are being pursued by Guardia Civil or ¨Grises¨ and Franco is dying . Nice acting by Fernando Ramallo as a teenager who has his sexual wakening and hates his dad's ways ; in every sense he is more noble than his father . Agreeable support cast gives good acting as the notorious Mirian Diaz Aroca , Jesús Bonilla , Maite Blasco , Ramón Langa , Montserrat Carulla , Alicia Hermida and Fernando Vivanco . Colorful photography with juicy atmosphere by Javier Salmones (Butterfly tongue , Romasanta, Los Borgia , Arte Morir , 13 Campanadas) deemed to be one of the best Spanish cameraman . Lively and emotive musical score by Roque Baños (Old boy , Fragiles , Machinist, Sexy beast, 800 bullets) including enjoyable central theme .

The motion picture was well directed by Emilio Martínez Lázaro . He was born in 1945 in Madrid , location in which he often shoots his films . He is a Spanish prestigious cinema director . Emilio is a director and writer, a good filmmaker expert on comedies as he has proved in : Los Peores Años de Nuestra Vida (1994) , El Juego Más Divertido (1998) and Amo Tu Cama Rica (1992) , drama : Las 13 Rosas (2007) La Voz De Su Amo (2001) , Musical as : Al Otro Lado De La Cama (2002) , Los Dos Lados de La Cama (2005). Being especially known for ¨ 8 Apellidos Vascos¨ considered to be the biggest box office in Spanish cinema and he is nowadays shooting ¨8 Apellidos Vascos 2¨ .
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