A more enjoyable follow-up to the 2003 hit The Other Side of the Bed, this musical comedy reprises the earlier film’s lively mix of frothy pop and romantic wrangling, using mostly the same gang of endearing protagonists. Javier (Ernesto Alterio), best friend Pedro (Giullermo Toledo) and Javier’s girlfriend Marta (Veronica Sanchez) are in a restaurant where Raquel (Lucia Jimenez), Pedro’s partner, is singing. Javier and Marta are to be married the next day, but Marta is getting cold feet. When she and Raquel head to the toilet to have sex together, we understand why. Next morning, Marta leaves Javier standing on the church steps, Raquel leaves Pedro, and the rest of the film largely details the males’ too-slow realisation of the truth. Superior fare by the standards of Spanish comedy, The 2 Sides of the Bed has a more substantial script and a more mature air than its predecessor, resulting in a slightly darker, richer experience. The songs are new arrangements of ’70s and ’80s Spanish pop classics and emerge fairly seamlessly from the action. —Jonathan Holland.

Director: Emilio Martinez-Lazaro

Spain| 2006. Subtitled. Colour. Anamorphic. Dolby Digital Stereo. 112 min

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