The small death

David Kepesh (Ben Kingsley) is a 60-something college professor who has just woken up to the fact that he is an empty shell of a man. His son hates him for leaving his wife of many years and his sporadic sexual encounters with women less than half his age leave him feeling emotionally drained. His only friend is award-winning poet George O'Hearn (Dennis Hopper), who acts like a teenager, gallivanting around New York City chasing after everything that walks.

Everything changes when student Consuela (Penelope Cruz) enters David's life and turns it upside down. Her innocence and frailty give the man a purpose, a will to live, and he falls in love. Consuela has a passion for life, perhaps flamed by her Cuban roots, and this draws the couple very close. Despite the fact that Elegy is an American production, the film has a European feel - it delves adroitly into its characters' souls to discover what really makes them tick.

Based on a novel by Philip Roth, the screenplay is intricately woven and fabulously enacted. This film asks many questions and leaves the audience scrambling to find the answers.

Drama. USA, Dir. Isabel Coixet with Penelope Cruz, Ben Kingsley, Dennis Hopper