Madrid 1987 | Ita

The setup is deceptively simple. Miguel (José Sacristán), an aging, cynical journalist and former leftist intellectual, meets Ángela (María Valverde), a beautiful, ambitious young film student. They discuss an interview over lunch. But when their older friend—who owns the apartment they’ve retreated to—leaves and locks the door behind him, the pair find themselves trapped. Not in a grand living room, but in the apartment’s cramped, windowless bathroom.

★★★★☆ (4/5) Unflinching, smart, and deeply human. Just don’t watch it with your parents. Madrid 1987 ita

For fans of My Dinner with Andre , Tape , or The Father , this is a hidden gem of Spanish cinema. It’s a film about a locked room, yes—but also about a country that’s still trying to find the key. The setup is deceptively simple

Sacristán delivers a career-best performance as Miguel—at turns pathetic, vicious, tender, and infuriating. He spouts quotes like weapons but breaks down when asked to feel. Valverde, just 21 at the time, matches him blow for blow. Her Ángelia moves from star-struck student to a woman who realizes her own power lies not in youth, but in the clarity of not yet having given up. The film is talky, unapologetically literary, and occasionally theatrical. But the dialogue is electric. Early exchanges crackle with intellectual flirtation; later arguments escalate into psychological warfare. One monologue about pornography, love, and the male gaze is destined to spark debate. Another, where Miguel confesses the exhaustion of carrying a failed revolution, lands like a eulogy for an entire epoch. The Verdict Madrid, 1987 is not for everyone. Those seeking plot will find little; those seeking provocation will find plenty. It’s a film that demands patience and rewards it with raw, uncomfortable truths about the gap between what we say we believe and how we actually live. But when their older friend—who owns the apartment