''Tramway to Malvarrosa'' () is a 1996 Spanish coming-of-age drama film directed by

José Luis García Sánchez José Luis García Sánchez (born 22 September 1941) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer. He has directed 30 films since 1968. He wrote for the 1973 film '' Habla, mudita'', which was entered into the 23rd Berlin Internation ...

and written by

Rafael Azcona Rafael Azcona Fernández (24 October 1926 – 24 March 2008) was a Spanish screenwriter and novelist who worked with some of the best Spanish and international filmmakers. Azcona won five Goya Awards during his career, including a lifetim ...

based on the 1994 novel by Manuel Vicent. It stars Liberto Rabal.

Plot

Starting in 1957, the plot tracks the

coming-of-age story In genre studies, a coming-of-age story is a genre of literature, theatre, film, and video game that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from childhood to adulthood, or "coming of age". Coming-of-age stories tend to emphasize dialogue or interna ...

and sexual awakening of Manuel, a small-town boy who moves to the provincial capital,

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, to study a degree in law.

Cast

Production

An adaptation of the novel ''Tranvía a la Malvarrosa'' by Manuel Vicent, the screenplay was penned by

. The film was produced by

Andrés Vicente Gómez Andrés Vicente Gómez (born 16 September 1943 in Madrid) is a Spanish film producer, head of Lolafilms, with more than 100 films to his credit. Career Gómez is the winner of an Oscar in the category of Best Foreign Language film for ''Belle � ...

's Lola Films alongside Sogetel, with participation of

Canal+ Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...

, and Sogepaq. In addition to the city of

, shooting took place across locations in the wider Valencia region, including the provinces of Valencia (El Saler, Alzira, Nazaret, Sueca, Guadassuar, L'Alcúdia and Alboraia), Alicante (Pego) and Castellón (Les Alqueries and Xodos).

Release

The film screened at the

Mar del Plata International Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival () is an List of film festivals, international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is the only competitive feature festival recognized by the FIAPF ...

in November 1996. It was pre-screened in

on 21 March 1997. Distributed by Columbia Tri-Star Films de España, the film was theatrically released in Spain on 4 April 1997.

Reception

Ken Eisner of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' deemed the film to be "a wonderfully evocative coming-of-age story".

Accolades

, - , rowspan = "4" align = "center" , 1997 , , rowspan = "4" , 11th Goya Awards , , Best Adapted Screenplay , , José Luis García Sánchez, Rafael Azcona , , , , rowspan = "4" , , - ,

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

, , José Luis Alcaine , , , - , Best New Actor , , Liberto Rabal , , , - ,

Best Art Direction The Academy Award for Best Production Design recognizes achievement for art direction in film. The category's original name was Best Art Direction, but was changed to its current name in 2012 for the 85th Academy Awards. This change resulted fro ...

, , Pierre-Louis Thévenet , ,

References

{{authority control Spanish coming-of-age drama films Films set in Valencia 1996 drama films 1990s coming-of-age drama films Films shot in Valencia Films shot in the province of Valencia Films shot in the province of Alicante LolaFilms films Films set in 1957 Films based on Spanish novels 1990s Spanish films Films scored by Antoine Duhamel