''On the Fringe'' ( es, En los márgenes, links=no) is an 2022 Spanish-Belgian thriller and social drama film directed by

Juan Diego Botto Juan Diego Botto Rota (born 29 August 1975) is an Argentine-Spanish film, stage and television actor. Born in Argentina, he moved to Spain together with his mother (the actress and acting coach Cristina Rota) in 1978. Following early film appe ...

from a screenplay by Botto and Olga Rodríguez. It stars

Penélope Cruz Penélope Cruz Sánchez (; ; born 28 April 1974) is a Spanish actress. Known for her roles in films of several genres, particularly those in the Spanish language, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British A ...

Luis Tosar Luis López Tosar (born 13 October 1971) is a Spanish actor and musician from Galicia. He is one of the most recognizable and versatile actors in Spain, best known for performances in films such as ''Cell 211'', ''Take My Eyes'', '' Sleep Tigh ...

Adelfa Calvo Adelfa Calvo Soto (born 5 April 1962) is a Spanish actress. Biography Born on 5 April 1962 in Melilla, Adelfa Calvo Soto moved when she was barely months old to Málaga, where she was largely raised, together with Seville. She is the daugh ...

, and Christian Checa.

Plot

A homage to the

Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH; Platform for People Affected by Mortgages) is a Spanish grassroots organization that takes direct action to stop evictions and campaigns for housing rights. The PAH was set up in Barcelona in February ...

, the plot revolves around the life of Rafa, a lawyer-activist set on helping people facing home eviction and who put his commitment to lost causes before his family, formed by wife Helena and

stepson A stepchild is the offspring of one's spouse, but not one's own offspring, either biologically or through adoption. Stepchildren can come into a family in a variety of ways. A stepchild may be the child of one's spouse from a previous relationshi ...

Raúl. Over the course of 24 dramatic hours, Rafa's story intertwines with those of Azucena (a retail cashier living with Manuel about to lose her home), and Teodora (an old woman who has lost her home in the wake of providing monetary guarantee to her son).

Cast

Production

''On the Fringe'' is

's debut as a feature film director. The screenplay was penned by Botto himself together with Olga Rodríguez. In addition to starring in the film Penélope Cruz also took over production duties alongside Morena Films's Álvaro Longoria. The film was produced by Morena Films alongside On The Fringe AIE and Panache Productions / La Compagnie Cinematographique with the participation of

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...

and

RTVE The Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española, S.A. (; ), known as Radiotelevisión Española or RTVE, is the state-owned public corporation that assumed in 2007 the indirect management of the Spanish public radio and television service know ...

, funding from

Eurimages Eurimages is a cultural support fund of the Council of Europe, established in 1989. Eurimages promotes independent filmmaking by providing financial support to feature-length fiction, animation, and documentary films. In doing so, it encourages c ...

, and support from

Ayuntamiento de Madrid The City Council of Madrid ( es, Ayuntamiento de Madrid) is the top-tier administrative and governing body of the Madrid, the capital and biggest city of Spain. The City Council is composed by three bodies; the Mayor of Madrid, Mayor who leads th ...

. Shooting locations included

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

and

Alcorcón Alcorcón () is a city and municipality of Spain located in the Community of Madrid. as of 2020, it had a population of 172,384. Geography The municipality, largely flat, lies at an average altitude of 711 metres above sea level, with the h ...

. It features dialogue in Spanish and Arabic.

Release

The film was selected for screening at the

79th Venice International Film Festival The 79th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 31 August to 10 September 2022. Juries Main Competition (Venezia 79) * Julianne Moore, American actress and author (Jury President) * Mariano Cohn, Argentine director, screenw ...

's Horizons section. It also screened at the

70th San Sebastián International Film Festival The 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival took place from 16 to 24 September 2022 in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, Spain. The awards were announced on 24 September 2022, with '' The Kings of the World'' winning the Golden Shell. Backgroun ...

. Distributed by Vértice Cine, it was slated for a 30 September 2022 theatrical release in Spain, then re-scheduled to 7 October 2022. It will later stream on

Reception

Wendy Ide of ''

ScreenDaily ''Screen International'' is a British film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by Media Business Insight, a British B2B media company. The magazine is primarily aimed at those involved in the global film business. ...

'' deemed the film to be "pacey, propulsive stuff" in which the helmer "combines a social conscience with a thriller's sense of mounting pressure". Mirito Torreiro of ''

Fotogramas ''Fotogramas'' is Spanish digital and print film magazine which has been in circulation since 1946. It is one of the early film magazines in Spain. History Founded in Barcelona, it was first published on 15 November 1946 by Antonio Nadal-Rodó a ...

'' rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, highlighting the honesty of the proposal as the best thing about the film, otherwise praising the "impressive acting works" that Botto obtained from Tosar and Cruz, which result into something "dazzling and touching". Raquel Hernández Luján of ''

HobbyConsolas ''HobbyConsolas'' is a Spanish video game magazine founded in 1991 by Hobby Press and published by Axel Springer SE. The first issue appeared in October 1990. The monthly magazine offers information about games for all consoles, and since 2012 ha ...

'' rated the "well-documented, painfully realistic and very humane film" with 70 points ("good") singling out Calvo's character and performance as the best thing about the film, while citing some "some overly forced characterizations and unsubtle messages" as negative elements. Toni Vall of ''

Cinemanía ''Cinemanía'' is a Spanish language monthly film magazine based in Madrid, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)( ...

'' rated Botto's "very interesting" debut film 3½ stars, declaring himself to feel most interested by the paradoxical theme of the depiction of that kind of people going out of their way to help strangers while at the same time being a disaster with those closest to them, rather than by the depiction of the wider horrible reality about house evictions.

Accolades

, - , rowspan = "2" align = "center" , 2022 , , rowspan = "2" ,

28th Forqué Awards The 28th Forqué Awards, organised by EGEDA, were presented on 17 December 2022 at the IFEMA Palacio Municipal in Madrid. Background The ceremony paid homage to the career of Verónica Forqué, died in December 2021. The nominations were read by ...

, , Best Film Actor , , Luis Tosar , , , , rowspan = "2" , , - , colspan = "2" , Cinema and Education in Values , , , - , rowspan = "11" align = "center" , 2023 , , rowspan = "2" ,

10th Feroz Awards The 10th ceremony of the Premios Feroz, presented by the Asociación de Informadores Cinematográficos de España, will talke place at the Auditorio de Zaragoza in Zaragoza, Spain, on 28 January 2023, to recognize the best in Spanish cinema and te ...

, , Best Actor in a Film , , Luis Tosar , , , , rowspan = "2" , , - , Best Supporting Actress in a Film , , Adelfa Calvo , , , - , rowspan = "2" , 78th CEC Medals , , Best New Director , , Juan Diego Botto , , , , rowspan = "2" align = "center" , , - , Best New Actor , , Christian Checa , , , - , rowspan = "5" ,

37th Goya Awards The 37th Goya Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain, is scheduled to take place at the FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre in Seville, Andalusia on 11 February 2023. Background On 31 May 202 ...

, ,

Best New Director ''Best New Director'' was an award given by the New York Film Critics Circle from its first inception in 1989 until discontinuing in 1996. There was no award in 1993. 1980s 1989 *Kenneth Branagh – ''Henry V (1989 film), Henry V'' **Runners-up: St ...

, , Juan Diego Botto , , , , rowspan = "5" , , - ,

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to th ...

, , Luis Tosar , , , - , Best Supporting Actress , , Penélope Cruz , , , - , Best New Actor , , Christian Checa , , , - ,

Best Original Song This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, , "En los márgenes" by Eduardo Cruz and María Rozalén , , , - , rowspan = "2" ,

31st Actors and Actresses Union Awards The 31st Actors and Actresses Union Awards ceremony was held on 13 March 2023 at the Circo Price in Madrid. In addition to the competitive awards, the Ministry of Equality received the '' award, whilst Lola Herrera was bestowed the '' life achi ...

, , Best Film Actress in a Minor Role , , Adelfa Calvo , , , , rowspan = "2" , , - , Best New Actor , , Christian Checa , ,

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 12306964 Spanish thriller films Belgian thriller films Films shot in Madrid Films shot in the Community of Madrid 2022 directorial debut films 2020s Spanish films 2020s Spanish-language films Spanish-language films Morena Films films Social realism in film