El Bola ( 2000 ) ( Pellet ) [ Blu-Ray, Reg.A/B/C Import - Spain ]

Brilliant, Heartbreaking, superb acting of the 2 kids and all the other members of the cast, Stunning, touching story and wonderful actors,this movie should be an Oscar awards winner. its very well made, each and every character shows the psychological complexity of the human being, the kids think and act somethimes like adults and the adults like kids or animals, it lets you feel what a real family and a loving father is, but also lets you perceive and understand what Domestic violence,child abuse and sickness means in many countries and places around the world or in your own next doors neighbors. Beautifully draws the real meaning of friendship, love and family values but also keeps you at the edge of the seat in pain and tears by seeing that abusive cruel sick father. Superb!

El Bola is a powerful movie from Spain. In 2000, it was director Achero Manas first full-length feature after having directed a handful of short film projects. It handles the powder keg issue of child abuse with realism. Juan Jose Ballesta plays Pablo, nicknamed Pellet. At filming, I believe he was 12. Juan had played on Spanish TV, but this was his first feature. He has worked consistently in Spanish films in the seven years since. He breaks your heart with those eyes that reflect the joy, innocence and love of a child and contrasts with the utter fear for his life. The culminating incident where he spits in his fathers face blows the lid off. We know whats coming and watch as the helpless mother flails about pathetically. Pablos best friend is Alfredo, played by Pablo Galan. Galan was chosen from 1,600 children who auditioned. He had no previous acting experience. Hes a bit heavyset; & his Alfredo is an oddball & loner. Galan was well chosen. He moves effortlessly between the young adolescent alienation, to wild abandon as he crashes the amusement park rides, to sober contemplation as he sees the family friend dying of AIDS. Beside Ballestas Pablo, Alberto Jimenez makes the greatest impression as Jose, the father of best friend Pablo. Jose is a tattoo artist. We first view him as wild, tattooing a dragon on fat mans back. As his screen time increases, we see a father who listens to his family, treats his wife & children well and cares about them and his friends. Jose stands up for Pablo, taking risks on the boys behalf. By the films end, he is our hero. With six films shot in 2007, Jimenez has had a busy career in Spanish cinema since this film from 2000. Our villain is Pablos father Mariano, played by Manuel Moron. The Film Movement DVD explains that the character is sad because of the loss of his first son. However, no explanation suffices for the loveless home life this father creates. I found it interesting that the Film Movement DVD lists stage training and productions for Moron in Spain & Argentina. Moron plays this controlling parent perfectly; and we hate him for it. Of the smaller roles, all characters are well directed and fill the film realistically. Ana Wagener, who to me looks a bit like Melissa Etheridges Spanish sister, plays the social worker Laura who advises Alfredos family on how to handle the situation. Maximo Jimenez plays Pablos friend Cobeta, a good looking lad who plays a game of rushing onto the railroad tracks before an oncoming train to grab a bottle. Gloria Munoz plays Aurora, Pablos helpless mother who cannot stop her husbands abuse. The screenplay leaves an open-ended conclusion. The events have been so disturbing that perhaps we all hope for the best. We could either interpret that things will get better for Pablo or that the father will get away with his domestic abuse. Perhaps in this situation, no one can actually win. This is a powerful film that should be viewed by mature audiences. May our angels around the world help children from every culture who find themselves helpless and attacked.

great movie covering a current topic.

This is Achero Mañas first film and is really excellent! It won 4 Goyas awards including best picture and best emerging director. Is a very interesting stoy about fathers and sons and that no always what you see is what is true. Really an excellent buy!

El Bola or `the pellet is the nickname given to young Pablo - he carries a ball bearing for good luck. He has a miserable home life where he is forced to help care for his incontinent and ageing grandmother, work in his fathers shop, his father is a vicious tyrant who beats him for any reason and is a control freak par excellence and his mother is indifferent. Across this ensemble is cast the shadow of his elder dead brother - whose place El Bola should be in - according to his father. Then one day a new boy enters the class - despite the initial rejection by the other boys, Bola sees something in him and starts a friendship. He then discovers a family who have many problems and despite the parents being separated they come across as balanced and loving both to each other and their children. This is something Bola has not experienced before and the friendship blossoms. Then his father finds out and bans him from any further contact - the beatings increase in ferocity too and everything starts building for a denouement - but who will be the ultimate victim? This is an extremely well made film with an outstanding performance from Juan Jose Ballesta (`Bruc) as El Bola and a supporting cast that all put in fine performances. Director Achero Mañas has taken the difficult subject of parental abuse and tackled it in a believable and still upsetting way. For anyone who suffered at the hands of a parent this will be an uncomfortable watch. The embarrassment factor is one that I can still remember having had a father with similar inclinations, and this is all captured along with the hugely violent mood swings and the seemingly innocuous things that can trigger the violence from the father. It is hard to say I enjoyed this film for reasons as stated, but it has made a lasting impression and is well worth hunting down - it came out in 2000. It is in Spanish with good subtitles and a run time of an hour and a half - not an easy watch but ultimately a rewarding one.

El Bola or `the pellet is the nickname given to young Pablo - he carries a ball bearing for good luck. He has a miserable home life where he is forced to help care for his incontinent and ageing grandmother, work in his fathers shop, his father is a vicious tyrant who beats him for any reason and is a control freak par excellence and his mother is indifferent. Across this ensemble is cast the shadow of his elder dead brother - whose place El Bola should be in - according to his father. Then one day a new boy enters the class - despite the initial rejection by the other boys, Bola sees something in him and starts a friendship. He then discovers a family who have many problems and despite the parents being separated they come across as balanced and loving both to each other and their cgildren. This is something Bola has not experienced before and the friendship blossoms. Then his father finds out and bans him from any further contact - the beatings increase in ferocity too and everything starts building for a denouement - but who will be the ultimate victim? This is an extremely well made film with an outstanding performance from Juan Jose Ballesta (`Bruc) as El Bola and a supporting cast that all put in fine performances. Director Achero Mañas has taken the difficult subject of parental abuse and tackled it in a believable and still upsetting way. For anyone who suffered at the hands of a parent this will be an uncomfortable watch. The embarrassment factor is one that I can still remember having had a father with similar inclinations, and this is all captured along with the hugely violent mood swings and the seemingly innocuous things that can trigger the violence from the father. It is hard to say I enjoyed this film for reasons as stated, but it has made a lasting impression and is well worth hunting down - it came out in 2000. It is in Spanish with good subtitles and a run time of an hour and a half - not an easy watch but ultimately a rewarding one.

This movie was a dissapointing waste of time. It showed that violence happens within family units and that not all people are bad. Thats it. Dull, uninteresting, negative, with no moral or even ending to the story. Junk.

Moving story of a friendship between two boys, where one of them is being tortured by his own father. The topic is and unfortunately will be still up-to-date. Sad to realise the reality of such cruelty and traumas for entire life. Worth watching though!

This is not an easy movie to watch. The main focus is child abuse and the help another parent tries to provide and just when you think all is lost, the main character learns to stand up for himself. I will be using this movie with my Spanish class.

Films thrive on parallel universes, and writer/director Achero Mañas El Bola takes full advantage of contrasting two fathers and their family lives through the eyes of their sons. Although the Spanish film won four Goya Awards in 2000 for Best Emerging Director, Best Emerging Actor, Best Screenplay, and Best Film, it was ignored by American theaters until now.. Although largely a heavy-handed indictment of parental failings and the indifference of Spanish social workers and legal system towards child abuse, the film retains ambiguities that make it well worth watching. Part of what makes the film compelling are the first rate performances by its young cast. Pablo aka El Bola (Juan José Ballesta) is a twelve year old living in Madrid. His life radically changes when he meets Alfredo (Pablo Galán) a new boy who joins his class. What follows is a comparison of two parallel family situations that remain ambiguous enough to keep the careful viewer wondering what exactly is going on in the families and the motivation for Pablos father Marianos (Manuel Morón) extreme violence towards his young son. In contrast is the homelife of Alfredo, a bohemian mix of couples that are willing to show their child the love and affection that is missing in Pablos life.Alfredos family atmosphere is completely foreign to Pablo--a much more relaxed, loving, and accepting bohemian lifestyle that appeals greatly to the boy. Exactly what the relationships are between the adults in Alfredos family remain unstated--a gay subtext may or may not exist, as the family certainly are friends with many homosexuals who have died from AIDS. Alfredos father, José (Alberto Jiménez), makes a living as a tattoo artist and anchors the extended family. The filmmaker leaves his sexuality ambiguous, which is irrelevant to the two boys--hes a levelheaded, caring father who has their best interests at heart. El Bola is at its heart a story of friendship between two young boys and the devestating effects of parental abuse. While the film is not always easy to watch it is very well made and well worth a viewing if not only for the story presented but for the questions it raises. Film Movement chose this film as its debut installment and presents the film with a making of documentary and the short film More by Mark Osborne.