Pals

Eloy de la Iglesia's 1982 film is among the best-known examples of the Spanish outskirts crime cinema known as quinqui. José, eighteen and unemployed, lives in a cramped flat in the slums of Madrid and spends his time with his friend Antonio; when his girlfriend Rosario becomes pregnant, they try everything to raise the money for an abortion. Unable to find legitimate work, they turn to petty crime. The film's decision is notable: what to do is left throughout to Rosario, while the story follows the two young men. Abortion was still banned in Spain in 1982, and the film shows the daily cost of that ban. De la Iglesia was openly gay and socialist, and in describing marginalised youth he places them inside both desire and poverty. José Luis Manzano's own life came to resemble the path these films describe. Who it's for: viewers interested in Spanish quinqui cinema and the social reality of Spain during the transition. Who it's not for: anyone avoiding content about drugs, sex work and the exploitation of young people, or wanting an orderly plot.