Marta and Surroundings (Spanish: Marta y alrededores) is a 1999 Spanish comedy-drama film written and directed by Nacho Pérez de la Paz and Jesús Ruiz. It stars Marta Belaustegui alongside Tristán Ulloa, Lola Dueñas, Sergi Calleja, Roberto Enríquez, María José Millán, Nieve de Medina, Rocío Calvo, and Álvaro Tobaruela.
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Plot
The plot follows the plight of a group of idle posh friends in their thirties lacking economic anxiety who meet at the home of one of them (Julio) to help him paint the house, while their petty quarrels and worries come to surface.
Production
Marta and Surroundings was produced by Clave Producciones and Alta Films. The budget was below 100 million ₧.
Release
The film screened at the 44th Valladolid International Film Festival (Seminci) in October 1999. Distributed by Alta Films, it was released theatrically in Spain on 14 January 2000.
Reception
Ángel Fernández-Santos of El País assessed that despite a slow start, the movie "picks up steam and, by the end, it comes to life and feels short even though it is not".
Jonathan Holland of Variety assessed that the "low-budget spectroscope of thirtysomething angst" results into "an accomplished, if unexciting, directorial debut with small but solid virtues".