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Bulgarian Lovers

Play trailer Poster for Bulgarian Lovers R Released Feb 13, 2003 1h 41m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
53% Tomatometer 17 Reviews 34% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
Graying Spaniard Daniel (Fernando Guillén Cuervo) has a healthy budget for indulging in the finer things in life. Daniel's favorite luxury is playing sponsor to younger men amid the lights and sights of Madrid's gay club scene. After Daniel shares a night with handsome Bulgarian emigre Kyril (Dritan Biba), he finds himself consumed with an insatiable lust for the charismatic foreigner. But, as their relationship takes shape, Daniel's latest conquest reveals his own manipulative tendencies.

Critics Reviews

View All (17) Critics Reviews
Joe Brown San Francisco Chronicle Well acted, and its Faustian dynamic of mutual exploitation would be absorbing enough, but as Kyril draws Daniel into ever shadier situations, the film loses its tone and devolves into absurd political farce. Rated: 2/4 Sep 10, 2004 Full Review John Monaghan Detroit Free Press Slightly better than some recent skin-deep gay- and lesbian-themed movies. Rated: 2/4 Jun 25, 2004 Full Review Charles Ealy Dallas Morning News Shows that Mr. De la Iglesia's long absence hasn't dulled his sense of stylish, cinematic storytelling. Rated: B+ Jun 10, 2004 Full Review David Noh Film Journal International Has a verbal wit and tang to it, which set it quite above most gay film fare in literary terms. Jan 4, 2007 Full Review Don Willmott Filmcritic.com cold and calculating, but it's a life Rated: 3/5 Nov 4, 2004 Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews ...hackneyed and dull... Rated: 1/4 Aug 21, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (11) audience reviews
Audience Member A blend of comedy, thriller, and love story. The love story is what I liked best since Dritan Biba (Kyrl) is gorgeous and Fernando Guillen Cuervo (Daniel) is well cast as the empathetic older man. It's believable that Biba is bisexual given his roots and that Cuervo is seeking younger men from Bulgaria as a challenge. The comedy is provided by Biba's overweight friends especially Gildo (well played by Pepon Nieto). When Kyrl says that there's 3 people he's loved. Nieto whispers "These 3 people took care of him." Another funny line is when Cuervo confesses "I'd give my life to you" and Biba replies, matter of factly, "I'd also give YOUR life to ME." Some of the humor is too forced though. The director Eloy de la Iglesia has some weird shots which are distracting to the drama so the comedy and drama don't really mesh. The movie ends like a thriller but the plot is convoluted. What I really liked about the movie was showing Bulgarians (immigrants) trying to make Madrid their new home. The wedding sequence was very entertaining. The movie ends well, depending on your perspective, with an "All About Eve" finale. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Like a poor version of Almodovar, but watchable. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Si no fuera por algunas escenas sería un fiasco! pero resulta interesante y algo divertida, igual no la recomiendo! Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review Audience Member la soledad, el deseo nos pueden llevar a hacer cosas insospechadas y que decimos hacerlas en nombre del amor Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member Mala, malísima. Recurro a la explicación de Bryan Ferrera sobre las causas por las que visioné esta peli: Nice amounts of male nudity throughout the film (for those of you who watch movies for that sort of stuff)... Ciertamente, Dritan Biba está bastante bien. Una pena que no le acompañe nada. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member The leads were fairly good, though the story is very predictable. Nice amounts of male nudity throughout the film (for those of you who watch movies for that sort of stuff)... Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Bulgarian Lovers

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Bulgarian Lovers

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Movie Info

Synopsis Graying Spaniard Daniel (Fernando Guillén Cuervo) has a healthy budget for indulging in the finer things in life. Daniel's favorite luxury is playing sponsor to younger men amid the lights and sights of Madrid's gay club scene. After Daniel shares a night with handsome Bulgarian emigre Kyril (Dritan Biba), he finds himself consumed with an insatiable lust for the charismatic foreigner. But, as their relationship takes shape, Daniel's latest conquest reveals his own manipulative tendencies.
Director
Eloy de la Iglesia
Producer
Eduardo Campoy, Jesús García Ciordia, Fernando Guillén Cuervo, Pedro Olea
Screenwriter
Fernando Guillén Cuervo, Eloy de la Iglesia, Eduardo Mendicutti
Distributor
CARTEL
Production Co
Altube Filmeak S.L
Rating
R (Strong Sexual Content|Graphic Nudity|Some Drug Use|Language)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
European Spanish
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 13, 2003, Original
Release Date (DVD)
Oct 19, 2004
Box Office (Gross USA)
$59.4K
Runtime
1h 41m