‘Un Amor’ Review: An Excellent Laia Costa Brightens Isabel Coixet’s Dark Return to Form
variety.comGuy Lodge Film Critic The negotiations of adult sexual relationships, as well as the demands forced upon single women in society, are recurring fascinations in the work of Spanish writer-director Isabel Coixet, albeit to erratic effect: In recent years, particularly in such English-language efforts as “It Snows in Benidorm” and “The Bookshop,” her voice has felt unconfident, even a little stifled.
But Coixet strikes with a renewed sense of conviction in “Un Amor,” an adaptation of Sara Mesa’s Spanish-language bestseller that plays to her unusual strengths as a full-blooded feminist filmmaker.
Making no cozy compromises in its portrayal of a young woman socially and sexually exploited by rural patriarchy — while still foregrounding the consuming strength and autonomy of her desire — it’s a tricky balancing act that mostly works, thanks also to a crackling lead performance by Laia Costa.
The combined draws of Costa and popular, much-translated source material should ensure “Un Amor” many further festival dates and relatively widespread arthouse exposure following its premiere in the main competition at San Sebastián.
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