Pedro Almodovar, Julio Medem, Alejandro Amenabar… just a few names to remind you of the greatness of Spanish cinema. But what had the past years to offer? We made a list of the best Spanish movies!
I had to admit to myself that I did not see many films from Spain before this article. Until now, that is. Spanish directors seemed conspicuous by their absence at recent important film festivals. How come? Sure, the country has been through better times economically, but isn’t malaise usually a source of inspiration? And what about Spain’s position as Europe’s stronghold of quality horror films?
- New Spanish movies in 2018
- Best Spanish movies of 2017
- 2010-2018: Must-watch Spanish movies on Netflix or DVD
New Spanish movies in 2018
Top movies up for release in 2018The Man Who Killed Don Quixote
DIRECTOR: Terry Gilliam CAST: Adam Driver, Olga Kurylenko, Stellan Skarsgård
A 21st century ad man from London ends up in Don Quixote's 17th century Spain. Read more
Netflix | 
Amazon | All Release dates Everybody Knows
DIRECTOR: Asghar Farhadi CAST: Taraneh Alidoosti, Shahab Hosseini, Babak Karimi
After his acclaimed film 'The Saleman', Iranian director Asghar Farhadi went to Spain for his next movie. Starring Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem, 'Everybody Knows' is a poignant romance drama about a Argentinian-Spanish couple slowly crumbling apart when they travel from Buenos Aires to Madrid. Read more
RATING: 85/100 Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates
Netflix 
Amazon Best Spanish movies of 2017
Top rated 2017 Spanish moviesThe Fury of a Patient Man
DIRECTOR: Raúl Arévalo CAST: Antonio de la Torre Luis Callejo Ruth Díaz
Jose has just been released from prison. 8 years ago, he took part in a jewel robbery that went terribly wrong. Now that he is free again, he is determined to avenge the men who got away. In order to do so, he slowly builds an intricate scheme. Suspenseful and atmospheric, 'The Fury of a Patient Man' is yet another great Spanish thriller. Read more
RATING: 80/100
RELEASE DATE: September 9th, 2016
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates El guardián invisible
DIRECTOR: Fernando González Molina CAST: Javier Botet Marta Etura Colin McFarlane |
Inspector Amaia Salazar heads an investigation which will take her back to Elizondo, the rainy village in the heart of Navarre where she was born, and to which she had hoped never to return... Read more
RATING: 79/100
RELEASE DATE: March 3rd, 2017
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates El móvil
DIRECTOR: Manuel Martín Cuenca CAST: Javier Gutiérrez María León Antonio de la Torre
Álvaro is a poor man obsessed with the idea of writing 'high literature'. He starts provoking conflicts to write about them. Planning all the conspiracy for a possible murder doesn't let him see that, in fact, he is the real victim. Read more
RATING: 74/100
RELEASE DATE: May 18th, 2017
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Best Spanish movies on Netflix or DVD in 2018
2010's best rated Spanish movies out on DVD, Bluray or streaming on VOD (Netflix, Amazon).La Isla Mínima
DIRECTOR: Alberto Rodríguez CAST: Javier Gutiérre Raúl Arévalo María Varod
A killer is slaughtering women in Marshland and two homicides detectives working on the case have their unsettled differences. To bring the killer to justice they need to... Read more
RATING: 73/100
RELEASE DATE: April 10th, 2015
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Julietta
DIRECTOR: Pedro Almodóvar CAST: Emma Suárez Adriana Ugarte Daniel Grao
After the somewhat disappointing 'Los amantes pasajeros', Almodóvar returns with a stylish and gripping new film. Title character Julietta is a middle-aged woman, seemingly happy (re-)married. She is about to move abroad with her husband, as she stumbles upon a friend of her long-lost daughter. What follows is a painful reconstruction... beautifully shot, colored and scored, Julietta marks a return to form by Spain's wunderkind. Read more
RATING: 71/100
RELEASE DATE: April 8th, 2016
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Stockholm
DIRECTOR: Rodrigo Sorogoyen CAST: Javier Pereira Aura Garrido Jesús Caba
A nice low budget flick which brings Richard Linklaters’ classic Before Sunrise to mind. A boy meets a girl in Madrid (no, not Stockholm), tells her he loves her which the girls finds hard to believe. What follows is a dialogue-driven story in real time, a long walk through a city at night, where the boy has to convince the girl. In the second part of the film, the morning after, it becomes painfully clear that both are seeking something entirely different. Stockholm offers nothing we haven’t seen before but is fresh and nicely naturalistic acted. Read more
RATING: 71/100
RELEASE DATE: November 8th, 2013
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Vivir Es Fácil con los Ojos Cerrados
DIRECTOR: David Trueba CAST: Javier Cámara Natalia de Molina Francesc Colomer
Spain, 1966. Antonio is a teacher who uses Beatles-songs to teach his students English. When he finds out John Lennon is shooting a film in Almeria, he embarks on a road trip, planning on meeting his idol. Along the way he picks up a few colorful hitchhikers. Vivir Es Fácil con los Ojos Cerrados (‘Living is easy with eyes closed’, a phrase from Strawberry Fields) is a nice bitter sweet road movie. Enjoyable, even touching at some times, even though the film sometimes tries a little too hard to reanimate the sixties, as is often the case with period films. Read more
RATING: 70/100
RELEASE DATE: May 17th, 2014
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Los Ilusos
DIRECTOR: Jonás Trueba CAST: Francesco Carril Aura Garrido Pedro C. Lozano
Another charming low budget film, albeit in another fashion than Stockholm. Los Ilusos feels like modern nouvelle vague film. It’s shot in black and white, the acting is spontaneous and it deals with a couple of cinephile twenty-somethings from Madrid. The story revolves around two young aspiring filmmakers reflecting on love, life and cinema. Los Ilusos is a so called meta film: a film about film which has a nice nostalgic vibe to it. Read more
RATING: 68/100
RELEASE DATE: April 13th, 2013
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates 10.000 km
DIRECTOR: Carlos Marques-Marcet CAST: Natalia Tena David Verdaguer Sirius Flatz
We have seen the story about whether love can survive long distance before, but this time it has been told rather well. Director Carlos Marques-Marcet was in charge of editing It Felt like Love, a film covering the same topic, and he must have learned quite a bit from that. This film is equally subtle, and perhaps even more relatable. Sure, we have social media, Skype and other technological means of communication, but actual intimate contact remains key in a healthy relationship. This film about a couple in two apartments far away from each other shows us all the pitfalls of a long distance relationship in modern times. Read more
RATING: 67/100
RELEASE DATE: June 10th, 2015
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates La Noche Que Mi Madre Mato a Mi Padre
DIRECTOR: Inés París CAST: Belén Rueda Diego Peretti Eduard Fernández
Aging actress Isabella, a scriptwriter and two producers meet in a country house, in hopes of making a deal. But then the actress' ex-boyfriend Carlos and his new lover show up unexpectedly. A comedy of murder and betrayal in the veins of Agathie Cristie's best work is about to unravel. Read more
RATING: 61/100
RELEASE DATE: April 29th, 2016
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Caníbal
DIRECTOR: Manuel Martín Cuenca CAST: Antonio de la Torre Olimpia Melinte María Alfonsa Rosso
Speaking of quality Spanish horror films; Caníbal once again proves Spaniards are pretty good at making those. Caníbal is a stylish, minimalist take on the well-known cannibal theme. Carlos is a quiet and gentle tailor from Granada who kidnaps young, foreign women to take them to an isolated mountain cabin and eat them. He works discrete. Things start to get mixed up for him however when he falls in love with Nina, his last victim’s sister. Caníbal is beautifully shot and ultimately more atmosphere-driven than plot-driven. Read more
RATING: 59/100
RELEASE DATE: July 25th, 2014
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates La Cueva
DIRECTOR: Alfredo Montero CAST: Marta Castellote Xoel Fernández Eva García-Vacas |
The Spanish tradition of creating indie horror films is not over yet. Here is another Spanish ‘found footage’ horror film (REC!) about a group of five youngsters descending into a hidden cave. Of course everything goes terribly wrong. The concept doesn’t sound too exciting, but La Cueva got pretty raving reviews after it was viewed at the International Film Festival in Rotterdam. And it is indeed rather interesting and shockingly realistic. Read more
RATING: 58/100
RELEASE DATE: July 11th, 2014
Netflix | Amazon | All Release dates Los Amantes Pasajeros
DIRECTOR: Pedro Almodóvar CAST: Javier Cámara Pepa Charro Cecilia Roth
Actually this film shouldn’t be on this list. It’s fairly horrible. But since it’s directed by Pedro Almodóvar, without any doubt Spain’s most prolific director, I think it has to be mentioned at least. Just to make sure you skip it. Because after 2011’s great gothic horror La Piel Que Habito, probably Almodóvars’ best effort since La Mala Educación (2004), it couldn’t disappoint more. This tedious and cliché-filled comedy deals with a dozen of people on a plane that is about to crash. Facing death, the passengers start sharing each other’s wildest fantasies. I’m not sure whether this movie had to be more or less vulgar in order to work. Let’s hope Almodóvar finds his old shape back with his next one. Read more
RATING: 56/100
RELEASE DATE: June 13th, 2013
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