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| Director: | Alberto Rodríguez | ||
| Country: | Spain | ||
| Language: | Spanish | ||
| Runtime: | 86 minutes |
7 Virgins (Spanish; Castilian: '''7 vírgenes'''|links=no) is a 2005 Spanish crime film directed by Alberto Rodríguez which stars Juan José Ballesta and Jesús Carroza. The film follows Tano, a juvenile delinquent in Seville that is given parole for a weekend.[1]
In Seville, 16-year-old delinquent Tano is given parole for 48 hours. José, his brother, picks him up and invites him to his wedding conditional of him behaving during the weekend. Immediately after arriving home though, Tano steals money from his family and hangs out with his friend Richi at a mall. Richi pickpockets a stranger, who ends up noticing and both friends are chased by the guards. After evading them, Tano confronts Richi for putting him at risk of permanent imprisonment. They come across José María, a man who Richi scammed with a broken phone, who demands the money back, but Richi manages to convince him to give the phone another try. At a bar, Richi suggests Tano to escape, but Tano is reluctant to become a fugitive.
After meeting up with his girlfriend Patri, Tano joins Richi again at a disco, where they meet two girls. As the night goes on, Tano keeps company to one of them while she vomits at the bathroom and later frustrates Richi's attempt to the rape the other girl. They later carry out a burglary at a sportswear shop, but are forced to flee as the owners chase them. Tano and Richi come across an obituary on a streetlight, reminding Tano of a car accident he had in which his mother died.
Arriving home, José confronts Tano over his stealing. He passes the night with Patri, but she confesses that her feelings towards him have changed and breaks up. Back to his neighborhood, he joins Richi and a gang to attack a pub. Although Tano is initially too depressed to participate, he is provoked and beats up another man unconscious. As Tano gets ready for the wedding, José is absolutely disillusioned, but does not explain himself. Richi is interrogated by José María again, who wants the money back immediately. While pretending to go back to his apartment to get the money, Richi secretly escapes to the wedding.
With the wedding over, Tano and Richi discuss their future plans, with Richi showing him a flat he intends to buy. When they part ways, José María shows up and bludgeons Richi. People on the street attend to Richi and take away Jose María, all while Tano watches paralyzed. Later, José and Tano are on the way to the detention center. Realizing that no one in his neighborhood has a future—whether criminal or law-abiding—Tano begs his brother to let him go. Hesitant at first, José finally accepts his request in tears, thus beginning Tano's life as a fugitive.
The screenplay was penned by Rodríguez and Rafael Cobos. The film is a Tesela PC and La Zanfoña Producciones production.[2] It was shot in Seville in 2004.
|-| align = "center" rowspan = "7" | 2006 || rowspan = "6" | 20th Goya Awards || colspan = "2" | Best Film || || rowspan = "6" | [3] |-| Best Director || Alberto Rodríguez || |-| Best Original Screenplay || Rafael Cobos, Alberto Rodríguez || |-| Best Actor || Juan José Ballesta || |-| Best New Actor || Jesús Carroza || |-| Best New Actress || Alba Rodríguez || |-| 15th Actors and Actresses Union Awards || Best New Actor || Jesús Carroza || || [4] [5] |}
The film was theatrically released in Spain on 14 October 2005.[6]