sol- Not the Gena Rowlands movie, but a very different sort of drama, this Chilean film revolves around divorced middle aged woman and her attempts to hold a steady relationship with a divorced theme park owner. Lead actress Paulina García has received much acclaim for her performance and she certainly plays a lady in her fifties as rarely seen on film; she is free-spirited, impulsive and very sexually active. Her desire not to be alone is potent, as is her ambition to go out and meet people every night as she refuses to sit idly by. Sergio Hernández as her new love interest gives the stronger performance though; as a more recent divorcée, he is still adjusting to single life and his reluctance to tell his grown children about his new girlfriend, lest he be called a "silly old man", resonates. His family life is curiously the opposite of hers as his children and ex-wife still heavily rely on him, while García has to remind her kids to call her. Whatever the case, their differences lead to some rifts and what does not balance in the film's favour is how Hernández comes off as the more likable character. García is too ready to blame him for everything that goes wrong, rarely looking inside herself and how she is the cause of some of their problems. Add an awkward, inconclusive ending into the mix and slow pacing throughout, and 'Gloria' becomes a hard film to recommend. Certainly the film has some truths to offer about fears of being alone, the inability to distance oneself from one's family and clinging onto the past, but one's mileage is likely to vary depending on how much one takes to the main character.

pc95 Life isn't always easy, and here we have a Chilean movie slogging us through with actress Paulina Garcia's pathetic and lonely woman who seems afraid to commit herself to anyone in her life. She is withdrawn in her shell from those she loves. And if you like misery, the first half of the movie dragged fairly badly and didn't present much in the way of conflict. The director, make-up, Garcia herself have succeeded in creating a total mope. Anyway, thanks to picking up some sort of storyline and the fireworks finale, the director saves the movie from the doldrums. (major spoilers) Absolutely loved the last 10 min or so of the movie with her losing it, and then the white peacock, and finale dance in her name. Sometimes the best scenes in movies really lift a mediocre movie to good standing such as this one.....7/10

Larry Silverstein After reading many glowing reviews of this film, I had quite high expectations. In truth, I was ready to toss those high hopes out the window, as the film seemed to be more and more difficult to watch as an exercise in sadness. However, after thinking about it and being blown away by the last 20 minutes of the movie, I came down on the side that it was an inspiring and powerful experience.Paulina Garcia, as Gloria, is magnificent and mesmerizing here as an attractive but terribly lonely middle-aged Chilean woman, who frequents some of the local dance clubs. It's here that one night she meets Rodolfo, who is very strongly portrayed by Sergio Hernandez. They're immediately attracted to each other and quickly begin a relationship.Unfortunately, Rodolfo turns out to be a rather despicable character, who's more interested in being completely enmeshed and co-dependent with his ex-wife and their two daughters, than in developing an adult relationship with Gloria. Even though Gloria sees the "handwriting on the wall" she has to decide whether she will succumb to this hurtful environment or return to her lonely existence.I thought this movie, directed and co-written ( with Gonzalo Maza) by Chilean filmmaker Sebastian Lelio, lost its' way at times and became difficult to watch. Also, I thought the explicit sex scenes and graphic nudity seemed to be more often done for effect than anything else.However, Garcia's incredible performance proved to be the key for me here, as her portrayal of Gloria gave me a strong feeling of her bravery and this movie has been one I've thought about well after it was over.

CinemaClown Age is just a number & you're never too old to stop following what the heart desires. Gloria centres on a divorced but free-spirited old woman who is trying to beat the loneliness & old age by going to singles' parties where she meets a former naval officer with whom she becomes romantically involved with & even dreams of a permanent relationship. But things aren't really as simple as they seem on the surface which later forces Gloria to confront her own secrets.This was the Chilean entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards & although it didn't impress me apart from a couple of things, there are many moments that'll make its viewers' smile. The best thing about Gloria is the character arc of Gloria herself, which is eminently illustrated on the screen by Paulina García in what is a scintillating & show- sweeping performance. The other thing I liked about it was the use of music.On an overall scale, Gloria can be viewed as a coming-of-age story set in old age & on a superficial level is simply about the celebration of life. Paulina García is definitely the best thing about this film but that doesn't mean its other aspects are a let-down by any means. The direction is fine, the script is intriguing but all these didn't really ring any bell like I was expecting it to but I do admire what it was trying to express.A good film that promises a fun ride but stumbles a little during its middle act, Gloria is by no means a great film but then by no means it's bad either. It didn't work for me but the story it has is pretty satisfactory for a mainstream audience.