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Reviews
The Five People You Meet in Heaven (2004)
Felt like the book.
This movie was a pleasant surprise. The director managed to include all that was necessary to tell the story from beginning to end, yet keep it short and sweet.
Most importantly, the movie retained the pleasant, almost eerie feeling of Albom's book. Nothing syrupy: it's shown from Eddie's viewpoint.
Good, understated performances from actors that understood the message and the meaning of it all, ensemble-style. Viewer may not recognize his or her favorite stars in this one.
Five People is worth the purchase, because this film is for sharing and for viewing over and over again. In fact, it will be necessary to watch more than once to catch all the details.
Nada menos que todo un hombre (1972)
Dark tone suits Unamuno
This rendition follows Unamuno quite closely. I suspect that viewers who have not read Unamuno will be puzzled by the ending.
The movie starts out bright with just a hint of the doubts of the heroine. The "hombre" of the title has none of those doubts, and therein "hangs a tale." The dark and light play off each other throughout the film, and are masterfully used. Seemingly innocent actions result in disaster and guilty ploys are serenely foiled. The director knows his Unamuno and plays it for all its worth.
This is a very good film for those seeking to understand Old Spain (before the EEC) and how male and female were expected to act their roles. I saw it years ago, and I still remember it, scene for scene.