A film review: "Vientos de la Habana" [2016 Cuba, Spain]

Félix Viscarret's crime thriller, "Vientos de la Habana" [Eng. Title: Four Seasons in Havana: The Winds of Lent] is a feature-length spin-off of a TV mini series that was rather well received in Spain. Since I've neither seen the TV series nor read the novel from which the film's adapted, this one's
gonna be brief.

Set in Havana, the film begins with the murder of young school teacher Lissete (Mariam Hernández) in her apartment, and the arrival of detective Mario Conde (Jorge Perugorría) to investigate. A post-mortem indicates the presence of drugs, alcohol, and semen in Lissete's body. Conde sets out to piece together events leading up to the fateful night, which will reveal hitherto unknown facets of Lissete and her dealings with some of her colleagues and students.

Running parallel to the above storyline is Conde's own story. A recovering alcoholic, he meets Karina (Juana Acosta) - his neighbour's daughter and a city-based lawyer, and falls in love. They date for a while but Conde wants to take their relationship to the next level. His circle of loyal old friends will help Conde in different ways on both his endeavours...

Of late, I'd become addicted to Scandi and Belgian crime thrillers and felt the need for a 'healthy' change, and a passionate Latin crime thriller could just be the ticket. But the film cannot be called a traditional noire; yes there are elements of noire in it, but the plot is straightforward and the characters are far too well-rounded with barely any conflicts and rough edges. It can more honestly be described as a grey-noire. I did however love the cinematography and editing that authentically captures the sultry and faded-glory of Havana, and the casting were great too. Recommended Viewing!

Amazon DVD Link [PAL]

 

The Nudity: Mariam Hernández, Pilar Mayo, and Juana Acosta
Mariam Hernández who plays school teacher Lissete is nude or partially nude in most of her scenes in the apartment. A nude Pilar Mayo is briefly seen in the bed of a crime boss. As Lissete, an ageless Juana Acosta appears nude in at least three scenes in the company of veteran Cuban actor and protagonist Jorge Perugorría.



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Juana Acosta and others in "A Golpes" [2005 Spain]

I haven't seen other films by Juan Vicente Córdoba, but if any of them were in the same league as his 2005 drama, "A Golpes" [Eng. Title: By Force], I wouldn't be surprised. This is about suburban gangs - male and female, trying to raise themselves out of poverty through crime, with an aim to use its proceeds to chase their respective dreams.

I'll spare you the storyline - let's say it is a drama centred around five young women - friends, their love lives, their squabbles, and one of the women's quest for boxing glory. Assorted characters are inserted along the way to propel their story, and everyone's fate is sorted out quite neatly and predictably towards the end.

I watched this film again, hoping to find something worthwhile to write about for my second review, but apart from the performance of Natalia Verbeke who plays aspiring boxer María 'Coco' Gómez, there is very little that could keep me involved in the film, and even the smattering of nudity and sex scenes fail to raise this above mediocrity. This, I'm afraid is one of those rather forgettable films occasionally churned out from Spain.

Amazon DVD Link

 

The Nudity: Natalia Verbeke, Daniel Guzmán, Juana Acosta, Bárbara Pérez de Lema, Susana Martin, and María Reyes Arias



Scene Guide:

• There is no nudity from Natalia Verbeke save a brief distant upskirt, but she gives a decent enough performance and it would be a shame not to include her in the compilation. Here, her character María cuddles-up to one-time boyfriend and fellow boxer Fran in the car before he embarks on a ram-raid - all in a day's work.
• With police hot on his heels, Fran persuades María's friend to pretend she's his lover. But Juanita seems to resist Fran's moves only briefly. Once the police leave, they decide to 'jump in' for a full-on sex session. Fran is played by a hands-on Daniel Guzmán, and Juanita, by a rather enthusiastic Juana Acosta.
• Fran and Juanita move into his parent's house. Here, she tries to persuade him to find them a place of their own.
• Fran's younger brother is shaping up as a gangster already - he wants to try out some curb-crawling girls (or even transsexuals) after being promised a blow-job. The girls are played by Bárbara Pérez de Lema, and Susana Martin. Sorry - not sure which one has her tits out though.
• Lola, one among the five all-girl friends, starts dating María's coach Mariano. Lola is played by María Reyes Arias.

 



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