Calle Málaga (2025)

Maria Angeles, a Spanish widow living in Tangier, refuses to let her daughter Clara sell the family home. Writer-director Maryam Touzani and cinematographer Virginie Surdej immerse the viewer in the city, and the film avoids melodrama. Maria’s quiet resistance becomes a triumph as she schemes to buy back her furniture and grows close to an antique dealer named Abslam. Carmen Maura gives a thoughtful, physically expressive performance that lends the character an inner glow. Touzani leaves her room to work, so little overt dialogue is needed to convey Maria’s frustration.

The tone is warm, witty and crowd-pleasing, with hurt at its core rather than anger. The film does not demonize Clara, but it does point to a wider lack of empathy toward older people. It celebrates the passions that endure rather than sentimental making do. What matters most about Maria is that she was never lost, so the story is about her self-assurance rather than a journey of rediscovery.