''Oviedo Express'' is a 2007 Spanish comedy-drama film directed and written by Gonzalo Suárez. It stars

Carmelo Gómez Carmelo Gómez Celada (born 2 January 1962) is a Spanish actor. He is the recipient of two Goya Awards, for best supporting actor in '' The Method'' and best leading actor in '' Running Out of Time''. A very popular actor in 1990s Spanish cinem ...

Aitana Sánchez-Gijón Aitana Sánchez-Gijón de Angelis (born 5 November 1968) is a Spanish and Italian film actress. Early life Aitana Sánchez-Gijón was born in Rome on 5 November 1968, to a Spanish father , a history lecturer exiled from Francoism, and an It ...

Maribel Verdú María Isabel Verdú Rollán (born 2 October 1970), better known as Maribel Verdú (), is a Spanish actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades throughout her career spanning nearly four decades, including two Goya Awards for Best Act ...

Najwa Nimri Najwa Nimri Urrutikoetxea (; born 14 February 1972) is a Spanish actress and singer. In 1996, Nimri formed the musical duo ''Najwajean'' along with producer Carlos Jean, launching ''No Blood'', an early instance of a trip-hop album in Spain. S ...

Jorge Sanz Jorge Sanz Miranda (born 26 August 1969) is a Spanish actor and one of the most prominent actors of the Spanish cinema since the 1980s. He is known to international audiences for his roles in the films: '' Amantes'' (1991) by director Vicente Ar ...

Bárbara Goenaga Bárbara Goenaga Bilbao (born 20 July 1983) is a Spanish actress from the Basque Country. She was nominated to the Goya Award for Best New Actress for her performance in the 2007 comedy-drama film '' Oviedo Express''. Biography Barbara Goenag ...

and Alberto Jiménez.

Plot

The plot was reportedly inspired on

Stefan Zweig Stefan Zweig ( ; ; 28 November 1881 – 22 February 1942) was an Austrian writer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most widely translated and popular writers in the world. Zweig was raised in V ...

's ''

Fear Fear is an unpleasant emotion that arises in response to perception, perceived dangers or threats. Fear causes physiological and psychological changes. It may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the ...

'', although barely anything of the work (the nexus with the intrigue if at all) is identifiable in the film. A troupe of thespians moves to

Oviedo Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...

to stage a play based on '' La Regenta''. Mariola Mayo is the leading actress performing the stage role of ''La Regenta/Ana Ozores''. The Mayor of Oviedo has an affair with journalist Bárbara Ruiz. Emma (a nod to ''

Madame Bovary ''Madame Bovary: Provincial Manners'' (; ), commonly known as simply ''Madame Bovary'', is the début novel by France, French writer Gustave Flaubert, originally published in 1856 and 1857. The eponymous character, Emma Bovary, lives beyond he ...

'' character), the scorned spouse of the Mayor of Oviedo and a young scholar preparing a PhD dissertation on ''La Regenta'', portrays a sort of Regenta-like in-fiction character. Emma has sexual intercourse with Benjamín Olmo, the leading actor of the play.

Cast

Production

The project was originally titled ''Érase una vez Oviedo''. The film was shot in Oviedo in 2006.

Release

The film was theatrically released in Spain on 31 October 2007.

Reception

Alberto Bermejo of '' El Mundo'' rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, writing that "above many other things, 'Oviedo Express' is very funny, even though it is much more than a comedy", with additional superimposed layers of farce, vaudeville, melodrama, and caricature, also featuring a cast of actors taking risks "in unusual registers" delivering the elaborated and "highly personal" dialogues of Gonzalo Suárez. Jonathan Holland of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' deemed the film to be "a typically eccentric dramedy" and (so much) "over-the-top", featuring a "bunch of fine Spanish actors overacting for all they're worth".

Accolades

, - , align = "center" rowspan = "8" , 2008 , , rowspan = "7" ,

22nd Goya Awards The 22nd ceremony of the annual Goya Awards, took place at the Palacio de Congresos of the Campo de las Naciones in Madrid, Spain on February 3, 2008, presented by José Corbacho. On December 17, 2007, Juan Diego Botto and Ivana Baquero read t ...

, ,

Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

, , Gonzalo Suárez , , , , rowspan = "7" , , - , Best New Actress , , Bárbara Goenaga , , , - , Best Production Supervision , , Teresa Cepeda , , , - ,

Best Cinematography The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best ...

, , Carlos Suárez , , , - , Best Original Score , , Carles Cases , , , - ,

Best Art Direction The Academy Award for Best Production Design recognizes achievement for art direction in film. The category's original name was Best Art Direction, but was changed to its current name in 2012 for the 85th Academy Awards. This change resulted fro ...

, , Wolfang Burmann , , , - , Best Makeup and Hairstyles , , Lourdes Briones, Fermín Galán , , , - ,

17th Actors and Actresses Union Awards The 17th Actors and Actresses Union Awards ceremony was held on 31 March 2008 at the Palacio de Congresos in Madrid. In addition to the competitive awards, the priest Enrique de Castro received the '' award whereas the '' career award. The Spe ...

, , Best Film Actor in a Secondary Role , , Jorge Sanz , , , ,

References

Bibliography

External links

''Oviedo Express''
at ICAA's ''Catálogo de Cinespañol'' {{Authority control Films shot in Asturias Films set in Asturias Spanish comedy-drama films 2007 comedy-drama films 2007 films 2000s Spanish-language films Films about actors 2000s Spanish films Films directed by Gonzalo Suárez Universal Pictures films