Calle Malaga Review: Carmen Maura Shines in Maryam Touzani’s Gentle but Uneven Drama

The new film “Calle Malaga”, directed by Maryam Touzani, opens with a history lesson on Tangier’s Spanish community, but it quickly becomes clear that the story is best told through the extraordinary performance of Carmen Maura as Maria. An elderly Spanish woman living alone in Tangier, Maria loves her quiet, familiar life — one she fiercely defends when her daughter Clara (Marta Etura) insists on selling the family home.

Based partly on Touzani’s own grandmother, Maria is a multi-layered character, alternately sharp, warm, funny, and determined. Maura, celebrated for her work in Pedro Almodóvar’s classics like Volver and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, gives the role emotional depth and vitality. Unfortunately, the film around her doesn’t always live up to her brilliance.

Shot beautifully by Virginie Surdej with sunlit warmth and paired with a sentimental score by Freya Arde, Calle Malaga starts with tragedy before softening into a sentimental story of resilience, community, and late-life romance. Maria fakes compliance with her daughter’s demands, then secretly returns to her beloved home, squatting there while rebuilding her world. With the help of neighbors, she hosts lively football-viewing parties and rekindles her sense of independence. Most notably, she develops a tentative romance with antiques dealer Abslam (Ahmed Boulane), whose chemistry with Maura delivers the film’s most genuine and affecting moments.

While Maria’s personal journey captivates, the supporting characters are underdeveloped. Josefena, her silent nun friend, feels more like a device than a person, though some comedic exchanges land well. Clara, meanwhile, is reduced to an ungrateful daughter archetype, despite having valid reasons for selling the apartment. The abrupt ending, leaving mother and daughter still estranged, feels unsatisfying in an otherwise gentle film.

Beyond its lead performance, the film struggles to capture the specificity of Tangier and the Spanish diaspora it introduces at the start. The neighborhood feels thinly sketched, and the broader community lacks nuance. Without Maura’s magnetic presence, the story could be set almost anywhere.

Calle Malaga is elevated by Carmen Maura’s performance and a charming romantic subplot, but its lack of narrative depth and emotional complexity holds it back.

Grade: C+

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival and is currently seeking U.S. distribution.