Magical Girl

Alicia is an ailing child who dreams of the dress in the Japanese series Magical Girl Yukiko. Luis, her father, will do anything he can to make her dream come true. It is not long before her destiny becomes intertwined with those of Bàrbara, a pretty young girl with psychological issues, and Damiàn, a teacher who has retired from everything yet cannot escape his stormy past. All three become trapped in a net of obscure blackmailing where instincts and reason spar with one another in a tragic struggle.

Magical Girl won the Golden Shell for best film at the 62nd San Sebastian Film Festival in Spain, and was nominated for Best Film at the 2015 Goya Awards, where Barbara Lennie won the prize for Best Actress.

Reviews

"Perfect (...) It's the most interesting and deep film exercise that Spanish cinema has achieved in recent times" (Luis Martínez: Diario El Mundo)

"A fascinating film, (...) that has, along with José Sacristán's great performance, also Bárbara Lennie's hypnotic work and the surprising one of Luis Bermejo" (E. Rodríguez Marchante: Diario ABC)

"Bárbara Lennie's character is one of the most complex in recent cinema (...) For his debut Vermut creates a unique universe that grows and consolidates" (Jordi Costa: Diario El País)

"A darkly intriguing, expertly composed and elegantly austere moral fable." (Jonathan Holland: The Hollywood Reporter)

Awards