Ander

‘BrokeBasque Mountain’, anyone? Though truthfully, this rustic romance from Spain's northern fringes owes a lot more to quiet American indies like ‘The Station Agent’ than to Ang Lee’s taboo-breaking blockbuster, a tender, tentative gay subplot notwithstanding. It's a film about acceptance and self-worth, not just for lonely cattle farmer Ander (Bengoetxea), but also his immigrant farmhand José (Esquivel) and abandoned prostitute Remé (Rívera). The plot may verge on soap, the emotions clearly signposted and a mite manipulative, but these are the hallmarks of a writer-director who cares too deeply for his characters: ‘Ander’ is a warm, generous, wonderfully sympathetic piece of work.