Lolita's Club
| Lolita's Club | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Vicente Aranda |
| Produced by | Andres Vicente Gomez |
| Written by | Vicente Aranda |
| Starring |
Eduardo Noriega, Flora Martínez, Belén Fabra Héctor Colomé |
| Music by | José Nieto |
| Cinematography | José Luis Alcaine |
| Editing by | Teresa Font |
| Release dates | 30 November 2007 (Spain) |
| Running time | 101 minutes |
| Country | Spain |
| Language | Spanish |
Canciones de amor en Lolita's Club (English: Lolita’s Club) is a 2007 Spanish film written and directed by Vicente Aranda. It stars Eduardo Noriega and Flora Martínez. The plot follows the story of twin brothers, one is a coldhearted violent police officer, the other is a helpless romantic with a mental disability. The two brothers are tragically involved with a prostitute who works in the bordello that gives the film its title. The film was adapted from an eponymous novel written by Juan Marsé.
Plot
Raul Fuentes, a brooding police officer prone to violence and alcohol, is placed on unpaid leave after he has beaten Moncho Tristan, the son of a local drug trafficker. Mazuera, a snitch from a drug mafia ring, tells Raul that members of the drug clan are looking for him to kill him. Mazuera strikes a deal with Raul. He would give him some documents that prove the involvement of the Tristan family in drug trafficking and prostitution if Raul reveals the story after he has left the country. Raul decides to leave the incident on hold and travels from Vigo to Alicante where his family lives.
Raul's visit, the first in two years, takes his family by surprise. His father, José, is not thrilled to see him. Their relationship is tenser due to the fact that Olga, José’s young wife, was originally Raul's girlfriend. Raul does not care about anybody, with the only exception of his twin brother Valentín, who is mentally disabled. Valentín is the opposite of his brother: sweet, soft and well liked by everyone. When Raul finds out that his brother is working in a nightclub and has fallen in love with one of the prostitutes, he gets very upset and goes in search of Valentín at the bordello called Lolita's club.
In Lolita's club Raul confronts Milena, the prostitute that is his brother's love interest. The beautiful Milena is an immigrant from Colombia, who has left behind her daughter under the care of her mother and works to provide them with a better life, sending them money frequently. Although only twenty five years old, Milena is the oldest and the most popular of the girls at the club. The other girls are mostly under-age like Nancy, who is from Cuba and Jasmina, from Ecuador. A hard nocturnal life of prostitution and drugs has taken its toll on Milena. She is goodhearted and really cares about Valentín. Valentín works at Lolita's club doing the errands for the girls and is liked and protected by all.
Raul threatens Milena if she does not break her close attachment to his naive brother. Valentín, traumatized by the relationship that his brother had with Olga, is afraid that Raul would get involved with Milena. A sexual tension arises between them. Things are further complicated with the links that the policeman and the prostitute have with the mafia. Raul plans to have sex with Milena and have his brother caught them in the act. It happens exactly as he intended. Two hit men sent by the mafia have found Raul's whereabouts and mistakenly kills Valentin instead of Raul when Valentine was running away from the scene of his brother betrayal with Milena.
After Valentin's funeral, Raul is a broken man who has nobody to turn to for understanding. Even Olga is now indifferent towards his pain. He has joyless sex with Maria, a female coworker, who comes to inform him of the killing of Mazuera by members of the mafia ring. Raul confronts Tristan but he is not looking for revenge. Instead he demands Milena's passport and freedom from the net of prostitution. Back at Lolita's club, Raul offers Milena her passport and freedom and declares his love for her. She rejects him and only retains her documents. She wants to keep making money. Raul reminds her of Valentín's tragic end. Of the two brother it was Valentín who she liked and loved. Later, Raul enters Milena's room at the club just as Valentín used to do, taking over his brother's personality.
Cast
- Eduardo Noriega as Raul\Valentín
- Flora Martínez as Milena
- Héctor Colomé as José
- Belén Fabra as Olga
- Yunet Guerra as Nancy
- César Mora as Mazuera
- Carla Sanchez as Maria
- Xosé Manuel Olveira 'Pico' as Tristán
- Andrea Ramos as Rebeca
- Yohana Cobo as Djasmina
- Vicente Gil as Simón
- Lara de Miguel as Bárbara
- Irene Escolar as Jeniffer
DVD release
The film was released on DVD in the U.S.A. in March 2009 in Spanish with English subtitles, as the options offered.
References
External links
| |||||||||||||||||