How to Be a Woman and Not Die in the Attempt

This sweet film probably meant so much more in its native Spain, where director Belén is a film star and singer, and writer Carmen Rico-Godoy is a well-known novelist and journo. It's presumably autobiographical: the heroine (Maura) is also a journalist called Carmen, and the film has an episodic structure similar to a series of gently humorous newspaper columns. Carmen's husband (Resines) is a genial-slob record producer. It's up to Carmen to clean up, deal with the kids and the maid, and work. The point is hammered home quite relentlessly, but it's a mid-life crisis without the crisis. Maura is as watchable as ever, even when the material is as desultory as this.