"Director: Benito Zambrano"

• Havana Blues | DVD | (28/01/2008) from £20.23   |  Saving you £-0.24 (-1.20%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Ruy and Tito have spent years together in a band in Cuba pursuing a recording contract that will bring them international recognition and success. Their long awaited break comes when a Spanish music producer arrives on the island looking to sign new bands with the Havana sound. As the band come closer to realising their dream Ruy and the producer become romantically involved and things begin to fall apart. The prospect of a recording contract in Spain is tantalisingly close but comes at a price; once they leave Cuba they can never return. For Tito it is an easy choice to make but Ruy has a wife and children pulling him in a different direction. He has to make a final decision one which will surprise everyone...

• Solas | DVD | (26/12/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Lauded in its native Spain on its release, Benito Zambrano's Solas is a touching portrayal of loneliness and redemption. At its centre is the strained relationship between Maria and her mother Rosa, brought together by Maria's estranged father's illness. Rosa (brilliantly played by Maria Galiana) not only discovers a world very different from her village existence but also finds her daughter's life in disarray--racked with frustration, bitterness and fuelled by alcohol. As the film develops, the two find their relationship not only beginning to grow but also influenced by the arrival of their elderly neighbour, played by Carlos Álvarez Novoa. All three find a new purpose to their lives and, while students of feminism may find Maria's path a little debatable, Ana Fernádez brings the audience on her journey in heart touching fashion. The darkness of tone throughout only makes the subsequent brightness all the more blinding and the result is without doubt a deeply moving piece of cinema. --Phil Udell