Pan's Labyrinth
This week has seen the Spanish film industry under the FemaleFirst spotlight and we round it by looking at some of the best Spanish movies.
And it's in recent years that these movies have broken out of their own country and enjoyed major international success with the likes of Guillermo del Toro and Pedro Almodovar becoming a real force in Spanish speaking cinema.
And you can't look at successful Spanish movies without taking a look at del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth which was released back in 2006.
Pan's Labyrinth, set in 1940s Spain, is a visual masterpiece and deserved all of the critical praise that came it's way.
It's a dark and twisted fantasy movie that, for a change, is aimed at an adult audience as de Toro creates some of cinema's most memorable characters including the Faun and the Pale Man, both beautifully depicted by Doug Jones.
Aesthetically Del Toro seamlessly blends the fantasy and fantastic with the cold and gritty harshness of reality with a range of strange and beautiful characters and sets that delve into a child's wild imagination.
El espinazo del diablo, or The Devil's Backbone, is another entry for del Toro which was produced by Pedro Almodovar.
Taking on themes such as the brutality of war and the loss of innocence, Guillermo del Toro's film skilfully combines elements of war, gothic horror, melodrama, and adventure.
Del Toro truly is a visual director who pays attention to creating subtle special effects that create atmosphere that you don't get from any other filmmaker.
Juan Antonio Bayona was the toast of the Spanish film industry last year when he directed The Orphanage.
The film plays on a parent's deepest fears: a child being hurt, lost, taken or, which packs a greater punch, leaving of their own accord. It also prays on our unrecognised fear of children and how their vulnerability makes us, as parents, vulnerable.
This is not horror for those who queued up to see the Saw rubbish and, for fans of Del Toro, you can his input all over the film as director Bayona shares the same arty and beautiful view of horror movies. This view is what makes the film work so well it doesn't have to be gory and in your face to truly chill you to the bone.
It's hard to believe that it was Bayona's directorial debut.
Jamon Jamon was released back in 1993 and launched the careers of both Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem. The film was a romantic farce that mocks Spanish social conventions and class relations.
Other high profile Spanish releases include The Motorcycle Diaries, Maria Full of Grace, Amores Perros, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown and Y Tu Mama Tambien.
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw