User Reviews

I saw this film at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival.

Obaba is loosely based on Bernardo Axtaga's collection of short stories "Obabakoak", which won Spain's National Prize for Literature. Set in a fictional Basque town, Obaba follows Lourdes (Bárbara Lennie), a film student who has come to tape the town for a school project. She is soon drawn to some of the stories of the residents, all of which are told in flashbacks. These stories help Lourdes to understand the town, its people, and its secrets.

Montxo Armendáriz, who wrote the screenplay and also directed, has put together a fine film that blends the past and the present. Rather than use Lourdes simply as a device for prompting the villagers to tell their stories, she is an integral part of the movie. Lourdes is intrigued by the tales and the town's superstitions, and she soon begins to wonder if she has been caught up in and affected by it all. However, the film takes only a few of the stories from Axtaga's collection, and any political overtones don't seem to be present. The movie takes a more realistic tone and lacks any fantastical elements other than the mysterious blue-green lizards that seem to be indigenous to the area.

Set in Obaba , where arrives a young filmmaker (Barbara Lennie) who efforts to capture the feel of the area , a mythical region in northern Spain, which in turn leads to a wealth of self-discovery . She is so interested in these local mysteries , as she interviews the aged inhabitants who recall their childhood , and youthful experiences happened long time ago and these experiences are shown as separate short films . All these tales exacerbate her ingenuity as well as imagination , and along the way she falls in love for a local young (Juan Diego Botto) . As she begins to investigate all the secrets of these mysterious people , of his family and their stories , but she finds dark trues .

Enjoyable and thought-provoking picture starred by two phenomenal actresses , Barbara Lennie and Pilar López de Ayala as a good-natured teacher . This slow-moving and intelligent picture is well set in Navarra , Spain , both nowadays and the 60s by means of flashbacks . Concerning a student who has come to tape the town for a school project , she is soon drawn to some of the stories of the residents, all of which are told in flashbacks. These stories help Lourdes to understand the little town , its people, and its secrets. Sensational film that dispenses a brooding plot and considered to be one of the best Spanish films of the2000s , in fact was voted one of the best pictures by professionals and critics . Sensitive film full of feeling , haunting mood-pieces , wonderful scenes , magic , fantasy and sense of wonder . Montxo Armendáriz, who wrote the screenplay and also shot , has put together a nice picture that mixes the past and the present. Colorful picture , including marvelous frames , being mostly filmed in various locations from Navarra , such as : Uztarroz, Isaba, Roncal, Ochagavia, Urrotz, Zizur Menor, Mutilva, Ekai de Lónguida, Liédana, and including evocative outdoor scenes , showing the incredible natural beauty of the landscapes . This extraordinary flick spells through intricate patterns of images , sets , sound and color . In addition , an excellent cast and support cast of known and prestigious players , such as Juan Diego Botto, Pilar López de Ayala , Eduard Fernández , Peter Lohmeyer, Héctor Colomé ,Txema Blasco, Mercedes Sampietro and Lluís Homar. . "Obaba" is one of Armendariz's undisputed masterpieces and fundamental in his filmography where shows efficiently an interesting story and shot at the height of his creativity , with some peculiar characters ,his style is pretty much dry in the atmosphere as in the fresh dialog , as well as realistic , and including pleasant elements . Splendid , luxurious photography with juicy atmosphere by Javier Aguirresarobe . Aguirresarobe subsequently would make a prestigious career in Hollywood such as ¨Fright night , ¨The twilight saga: eclipse¨, ¨The road¨ , ¨The others¨ and many others . Interesting screenplay by the same director based on a original novel by Bernardo Atxaga . Moving and emotive musical score by Xavier Capellas . This touching picture will appeal to Spanish films buffs ; being deservedly nominated for.

This motion picture rich in symbolism was perfectly produced by magnificent producers Karl Baumgartner, Michael Eckelt , Puy Oria and Montxo Armendáriz himself , being stunningly directed by Montxo Armendariz , a very good Spanish movies filmmaker . And won various Goya Awards 2006 such as : Winner Goya Best Sound Carlos Bonmatí Alfonso Pino , Goya Best Director Montxo Armendáriz , Best Production Manager Puy Oria , Best Production Design Julio Esteban , Julio Torrecilla , Best Adapted Screenplay Montxo Armendáriz , Best Supporting Actress Pilar López de Ayala and Premios ACE 2006 Winner Premio ACE Best Film , Cinema Best Actress Pilar López de Ayala and Terenci Moix International Award 2006 Winner Terenci Moix Award Best Film Montxo Armendáriz . Montxo is a well recognized director both nationally and internationally, and in proof of it he won many prizes in several Festivals . Montxo Armendáriz was born in Navarra, and his films are mostly set in this Spanish region . He is a nice writer and director, expert on dramas , being especially known for Tasio (1984) , 27 hours (1986) , Cartas a Alou (1990) , Secretos del Corazón (1997), Silencio roto or Broken silence (2001) , this Obaba (2005), and his last film : No Tengas Miedo (2011) . Rating : 7/10 . Worthwhile watching . The flick will appeal to Spanish cinema enthusiasts.

This set of several stories is well conveyed by use of flashbacks. Lourdes' pursuit of the villagers' stories for her film project sets up several different story lines with no small amount of intersection in this remote mountain village.

But there are no real surprises in these stories in that the use of "magical realism" is used inconsistently. Some stories are resolved logically and others remain unresolved by rational explanations. The film suffers a little in not making up its mind about whether to be magical or not.

It's still a good movie but not a great one. I think it would be worth picking up Axtaga's Obabakoak collection to get a fuller view of this (potentially) mysterious place.

Obaba is the film that was sent from Spain to the Academy for the foreign language film category. Considering its extraordinary theme with equally unique presentation, it's hard to imagine why it didn't get the Oscar nomination nod. The story tells us about Lurdes, a young filmmaker who travels to the village Obaba to shoot a documentary about its people. Some of the aged inhabitants recall their childhood experiences and these experiences are shown as separate short films. Lurdes tries to co-relate all their stories, in order to do which she slowly becomes a part of Obaba. The village is perhaps meant to be treated as a consciousness, as suggested by the director by his brilliant use of the myth of green lizards as a metaphor.

The film excludes all the typical and clichéd camera angles and shot sequences. For using visual themes, it does many brave experiments. Some of the acting performances are worth mentioning too, for example the actress who played the schoolteacher or the boy who played Esteban. To summarise, "Obaba" was indeed a very refreshing experience for us who often get tired by the same styles of Hollywood hits.

Although this starts out promisingly, a woman in a car is weaving around dark roads in the middle of the night in the middle of the forest until she almost hits a man holding a lizard! This gave me the impression that we were going to see something special, something almost David Lynchian (if there is such a term), but unfortunately, the film starts to go everyplace, not having a core center, just sort of meandering story about a woman trying to solve a mystery of a small town. The character study goes all over the place, and I couldn't really care for any of the characters it seems, especially when some of the story all of a sudden goes into flashback mode. I had some hopes for this movie, but all in all, it was a bit of a letdown.

Not since 'A Hard Days Night' can I remember a film where I became so attached to the characters in the drama that I almost didn't believe I was seeing a fictional movie, but a documentary with an omniscient camera secretly filming reality. Viewers can't help but fall deeply in love with Lourdes, played by Barbara Lennie. She is impossibly perfect for the role, and in it; both because of her incredible natural beauty, and because of her flawless ability to make us believe that she isn't acting. But something is missing in the film. As the other reviewer commented, there are a few stories going forward in parallel, but you feel there may have been more that weren't included. So it feels somehow, incomplete. The other reviewer knew about the missing parts from the book, and the missing political overtones. I didn't, but subconsciously, I was hungering for them near the end of the film. This is one of those films where, you feel they may have had, or could have had a perfect 3 hour movie, but had to edit it down to two hours and perhaps cut out some of the most interesting parts. Lourdes carries the burden of three romances: the romance between her and her lover in the film, the one developing between her and the audience; and finally the one with Obaba. The nude scenes of the actress early in the film may have been as important in breaking the tension between her and the audience as they were breaking that between her and her lover. It's my personal biased opinion (interpretation), that the director of the film was only able to make us fall that deeply in love with her because we were looking through his eyes; his, and those of Obaba the town's itself! So what's the point? Are we, from this point on, able to be as seduced by Obaba as she was? With her seduction of her lover and us complete... the story can shift its emphasis onto the love affair between her and Obaba, the town, which covets her as much as we did. But how can a town seduce a beautiful, successful film student?

In any case, this film is charming, and a very fascinating portrayal of the heart of Obaba, a character with a complex personality that in the end, is the principal character in the film.

Wow, I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative reviews of this movie. Maybe you had to see it in Spain as I did or maybe you have to enjoy movies that make you think. This is not your generic Hollywood-I-understand-everything-within-ten-minutes type of movie. This is a movie that one has to think about and contemplate after it is done and it might take several days to come across what you think the movie was actually trying to say. That, in my opinion, is a sign of a good movie. Obaba is not an actual place, it is a state of mind. Once people understand that, they can see the movie for what it is: an intelligent, beautiful, and mysterious view of northern Spain.

Obabakoak is a bunch of short stories with an only common point: the little Vasque town of Obaba. In this film, the director tries to explain some of these stories by using a young reporter as a continuum. The result is a strange film, as it has any main character (the movie spends about 20 min. to each tale) other than the town of Obaba. Any story is really well explained and the fact is that they result very boring. It was by far the best film of the year in Spain, but, well, that's not saying too much. The only good thing of the film is the precious scenarios. It is filmed in a very precious valley and it is more enjoyable to spend the time watching the scenario rather than being aware of the story.

I found Obaba as the Montxo's best film. Atxaga's work is also visible. The way the director shows the misery of the rural life and the beauty and attraction of the rural environment is magnificent. I've seen almost all the Armendariz's films and I think Obaba is the (final?) good result of a "not so good" filmography. The camera man's work is very good, in the "filming scenes" specially. The best artist is Pilar Lopez Ayala - the teacher- which makes me believe in "the teacher" much more than the other artists. The worst Juan Diego Botto which, I found, doesn't have many registrations in his work as an actor. I've seen it not only in that film.... a pity...) A very international film... let's see in the Oscar.... A universal Basque film.

With great expectations I went to see this film, Spain's contribution to the Oscar-race this year. Part from being completely pointless, banal, pathetic, badly written, edited, acted and directed, the movie is too long. It fails in delivering the "message" it tries to give, fails in its storytelling, clumsy historical settings and above all in its rhythm. There are some so extreme misfires I haven't seen in a movie in a long time (the story of Lucas whose dead sister lives in his head, the divine revelations, all that lizard nonsense). The Spanish-speaking audience around me was yawning and rapidly losing patience, and some of the commentaries I overheard was whether the members of the Spanish Academy had taken drugs before choosing the film for the Oscar contest.

This is a beautiful film, evocative of life in a rural Basque village, based on the book Obabakoak, by Bernardo Atxaga. It is a fine film, rich in symbolism.

The audience was quite involved and interested. This was in Bilbao, and the film was dubbed into Euskera (Basque) with no subtitles.

It's vitally important to do more films in threatened languages such as Euskera. Atanarjuat was made in Inuktitut, Hedd Wyn in Welsh. Both were a success both critically and popularly. Since Atxaga is the author who has put Basque literature on the map, his film should and could have been made in Basque.

well to start i was definitely attracted to the lead actress .lurdes , if i actually remember .the scene in which she finds a man with a green lizard in his hand in the night ,i thought it could be a thriller .but i later understood it was a very different movie from those i had watched before .i didn't her language it was Spanish .i read the subtitles,the schoolteacher was also the character resulted from emotional acting an skillful direction .it was fully clear ,the character she was portraying ;the way she scolds Ismael,adores Esteban;talks,sings,smokes with Manuel .exelent.well though i watched the whole movie i could finally get a meaning of the whole picture though i got a conclusion .it was a understand yourself movie . unlike other movies like terminator.i got attached to the movie,the characters,and Obaba. I would really like to thank the director for such an exceptional piece art as an audience.thank you.