Top 100 Most Anticipated Foreign Films of 2016: #73. Agustin Diaz Yanes’ Oro

Oro

Director: Agustin Diaz Yanes
Writer: Arturo Perez-Reverte

One of Spain’s most unappreciated directors (at least as far as international renown) is Agustin Diaz Yanes. If you haven’t seen his 2001 sophomore film Don’t Tempt Me starring Penelope Cruz and Victoria Abril as representatives of Heaven and Hell duking it out over the soul of Demain Bichir’s broody boxer, you’re missing out. After the large scale international co-production Alatriste (2006) starring Viggo Mortensen (see set pic above), Yanes reunited with Abril for the revenge thriller Walking Vengeance (aka Just Walking) in 2008. He’s been quiet since, but will be adapting another work by celebrated author Arturto Perez-Reverte (who penned the novel upon which Alatriste is based) this year with Oro, a period adventure inspired by 16th century Spanish conquistadors searching for gold in the Amazon jungle. Sony Pictures Spain just recently boarded the project which will star Oscar Jaenada (Cantinflas) and some faces we recognize from recent Almodovar titles, like Barbara Lennie (The Skin I Live In) and Raul Arevalo (I’m So Excited).

Cast: Oscar Jaenada, Raul Arevalo, Barbara Lennie, Juan Echanove

Production Co.: Sony Pictures Spain, Atresmedia Cine, Apache Films

U.S. Distributor: Sony Pictures (international).

Release Date: Filming begins this January in the Canary Islands. Depending on the production, we’ll be lucky if Yanes is ready by the fourth quarter. The project closely resembles his 2006 film Alatriste which premiered at Venice right before heading to TIFF, so we predict a similar route if it is ready in time.