Review of Al otro lado del túnel

This was Fernando Rey's last movie as an actor, he died shortly after. And what a way to say good-bye. The plot is rather simple: two screen writers, one old and accomplished (Rey), the other one in the learning curve, but young and smart, hide away in a monastery to escape writer's block and concentrate on a piece of work they must do against a tight time line. But against this simple plot, both men confront the essentials of live: one's work and creative art, love, lust, youth and aging, and ultimately, death. Their task and sense of duty is constantly challenged by the pleasures of life, landscape, food, the enjoyment of a walk in the country, and the final and definitive distraction: a mysterious, sensuous woman.

What makes this movie is the dialog, one of the most intelligent, picaresque, ironic dialogs of any film. Shot against a beautiful landscape.

I've seen it twice, and I've decided to buy it. A must in anybody who loves good intelligent films, out of the ordinary.