Anita Takes a Chance (2001)
"Anita no perd el tren" (original title)

Fifty-something widow Anita loses her lifetime dream job as a cinema attendant when the new owner wants to tear down the old theater and build a trendy multiplex in its stead. Depressed at ... See full summary »

Director:

Ventura Pons

Writers:

Lluís-Anton Baulenas (novel), Lluís-Anton Baulenas (screenplay),

Stars:

Rosa Maria Sardà, Isak Férriz, Jade Pradas

9 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rosa Maria Sardà	...	Anita
Isak Férriz	...	Dependent
Jade Pradas	...	Bessona 1
Arlem Pradas	...	Bessona 2
Sònia Colom	...	Anita nena
Mercè Arànega	...	Mare
Josep Costa	...	Client peixateria 1
Maribel Altés	...	Clienta peixateria 2
Jordi Dauder	...	Sr. Leyva
Aina Clotet	...	Anita jove
María Barranco	...	Natalia
Roger Coma	...	Cambrer
Albert Trifol	...	Empleat INEM
Santi Ibáñez	...	Espectador 1 (as Santi Ibàñez)
José L. Sansalvador	...	Veu de cine 1 (voice) (as José Luis San Salvador)

Storyline

Fifty-something widow Anita loses her lifetime dream job as a cinema attendant when the new owner wants to tear down the old theater and build a trendy multiplex in its stead. Depressed at first, Anita finds comfort in watching the shirtless hunks on the theater's construction site. She befriends a married excavator operator, Antonio, and the two start their secret candlelit trysts in the site's office cabin. But soon Anita learns that excavators are only needed in the early phase of a construction project...

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Plot Keywords:

theater | cinema | man in underwear | talking to inanimate object | long distance telephone call | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

Spain

Language:

Catalan

Release Date:

26 January 2001 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Anita no pierde el tren

Filming Locations:

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

Box Office

Gross:

ESP 79,520,225 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+ España, Els Films de la Rambla S.A., TVC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References Casablanca (1942)

User Reviews

Comedy, almost comical

I do not generally appreciate light-weight attempts at creating humourous stories, which means that "Anita no perd el Tren" cannot score very high for me. The story is good: a middle-aged but still good-looking woman finds a new love. But the attempts at making this film as a romantic comedy only managed at times to be somewhat comical.

Rosa María Sardà has ably demonstrated that she can be a serious actress in such productions as "Amic/Amat" (qv), "Todo Sobre mi Madre" (qv), "Las Amargas Lágrimas de Petra von Kant" (qv) and "El Embrujo de Shanghai" (qv). However the powers that be have over the years dished her out a lot of trivial stuff, for the cinema and for TV. Something similar could be said of José Coronado: perfectly able to produce serious performances. María Barranco belongs safely in this grouping.

Such that, in the end, I was left with the feeling that I would be real pleased to see a new making of this film, in a serious tone, which would allow the actors to really show their performing skills. And the curious thing is that it should be done with exactly the same leading actors. Wasted talent on a rather silly film that could have been very promising indeed.