Solo Mia

Rating:
Summary: Worth a viewing...
Review: I was at the video store and picked this one up on a whim, recently having become an avid foreign film watcher.The movie focuses on a couple (Sergi Lopez and Paz Vega) and their stormy relationship. The two meet at the office where he works and she has just gotten a job. Things start off well. He gets along with her family and friends. She becomes fast friends with his coworker's wife (Elvira Minguez). She becomes pregnant with their first child. He sees that she has been smoking one day and hits her. This is the first signs of the violence that only escalates after the child is born. She confides in her friends and family, who initially play it off, but soon become worried when she starts to show bruises. The two get a divorce but he continues to follow her and, when she tries to get some justice, the court system fails her. She tries to make well with him but comes to the realization that she dislikes him greatly after all he's done, leading to a climactic ending. Sometimes the melodrama is a bit cheesy, but you can feel her fear as she gets no help from the justice system and must take matters into her own hands. Lopez effectively portrays a man who seems to know he's done wrong, yet can't find a way to change himself. Good performances all around. Worth a viewing.