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O Theos agapaei to haviari, the epic story of sailor, entrepreneur and national hero Ioannis Varvakis, has triumphed at the box office in dark times for the country's self-worth

The Greeks never used to have hero issues. But heroes have been in short supply in the country's hour of need, which could explain the rush to cinemas to spend time in the company of an 18th-century pirate turned luxury foodstuffs tycoon. Recent release O Theos agapaei to haviari (God Loves Caviar) is the story of Ioannis Varvakis, an Enlightenment-era rapscallion who sided with the Russians in their 1768 war with the Turks, befriended Catherine the Great and built a fortune out of sturgeon eggs – then gave it all away to help his motherland fight the Ottoman empire. It's not exactly all-action Pirates of the Aegean; with Catherine Deneuve as Catherine, John Cleese as an English colonial officer and The Lives of Others...

Chicago – We’re back with our look at week two of the The 12th Annual EU Film Festival at the Siskel Film Center, one of the best film events of the year in the Windy City. If you missed part one and want to relive the best of the first seven days of the fest, check it out here. On to week two…

This year’s edition, running from March 6th to April 2nd, includes high profile films from world renowned filmmakers like Peter Greenaway, Francois Ozon, Agnes Varda, Nicholas Roeg, Shane Meadows, Olga Malea, and Olivier Assayas, along with some movies that probably won’t be seen outside of the EU in the Windy City.

The 12th Annual European Union Film Festival includes 59 feature films, all of which are making their Chicago premiere. If you’re interested in seeing something off the beaten path, the EU is the fest for you.

Winners of the 23rd Annual Goya Awards, Spain's equivalent of the Academy Awards, have been announced on Sunday, February 1 and "Camino" has come up as the big winner. The Javier Fesser's film about a young girl's death, her mother's staunch Catholic beliefs and the Church's effort to canonize the girl collected six awards, including the coveted prize, Best Film.

Apart from the Best Film prize, the movie also brought home kudos for director and writer Javier Fesser as the fimmaker was awarded with Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Additionally, its actresses, Carmen Elias and Nerea Camacho, and actor Jordi Dauder have been hailed Best Actress, Breakthrough Actress and Best Supporting Actor in respective order.

Benicio del Toro and Penelope Cruz have also scored an award each. del Toro won the Best Actor title for his performance in "The Argentine", while Cruz was hailed Best Supporting Actress for her...

Madrid -- Javier Fesser's mystical "Camino" walked away as the big winner Sunday at the 23rd Goya Awards, taking home nods for best film, director, actress, new actress, supporting actor and original screenplay.

"Camino," which tells the true story of a young girl's death, her mother's staunch Catholic beliefs and the Church's effort to canonize the girl, saw young Nerea Camacho win the new actress award and Carme Elias, who played her mother, take the lead actress honor.

" 'Camino' is a love story and vindication of the right to be happy. In these times, it's important to hope," said producer Jaume Roures, head of Mediapro, which also produced Woody Allen's Spanish film "Vicky Cristina Barcelona."

Penelope Cruz seemed to sum up the international vibe of the evening when she picked up her Goya for supporting actress in "Barcelona," the same role that earned her an Oscar nomination.

Mel Ferrer, whose career as a performer, director, producer and writer spanned six decades, has died at age 90.

Ferrer died Monday at his ranch near Santa Barbara, family spokesman Mike Mena said.

"It's a sad occasion, but he did live a long and productive life," Mena said Tuesday.

He appeared in more than 100 films and made-for-television movies, directed nine films and produced nine more.

Ferrer's most impressive film role came in 1953 in Lili. He played a disabled carnival puppeteer with whom a French orphan (played by Leslie Caron) falls in love.

On the big screen, Ferrer was most recognizable for his performance as Prince Andrei in War and Peace in 1956 with Audrey Hepburn and Henry Fonda. He was paid the then princely sum of $100,000. He appeared in The Sun Also Rises alongside Ava Gardner, Tyrone Power and Errol Flynn.

Ferrer was often cast in big pictures during the late '50s and early '60s: The World, the Flesh and the Devil with Harry Belafonte and Inger Stevens; Sex and the Single Girl with Natalie Wood and Tony Curtis; Paris Does Strange Things with Ingrid Bergman; and The Longest Day with an all-star male cast.

Despite his aristocratic looks and versatility, Ferrer never hit stardom as a leading man. Later in his career, he starred primarily in TV movies and, living in Europe since 1954, he performed in a number of obscure European productions as well as intermittent U.S. exploitation fodder like Eaten Alive (1977).

Active in all forms of performance, Ferrer (with Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Joseph Cotton), founded the La Jolla Playhouse in 1947.

In film, Ferrer produced Wait Until Dark, with Hepburn, his then-wife, as the female lead. Previously, he directed Hepburn, whom he met while they starred together in Ondine on Broadway, in Green Mansions. Among his other noteworthy film accomplishments, Ferrer directed Claudette Colbert in the film The Secret Fury in 1950 and produced El Greco in 1966.

MADRID -- Forty-three Spanish films, including international co-productions Manolete and El Greco, will unspool at the third Madrid de Cine Spanish Film Screenings for buyers from around the world, organizers said Wednesday.

"We're now definitely on the calendar for international film buyers who are increasingly interested in what Spanish producers, directors and actors have to offer," Pedro Perez, president of the Federation of Spanish Film Producers, (FAPAE), told a press conference about the event.

More than 145 buyers from 37 countries have confirmed they will show up at the screenings, set for June 8-10 -- that's 15 more buyers than attended last year. Thirty-three countries were represented at the 2007 edition.

The nine U.S. buyers expected are HBO, Lionsgate, Magnolia Pictures -- HDNET Films, Sundance Channel, Venevision International, Strand Releasing and LAPTV, according to the organizers.

But the biggest contingent will be from the U.K. with buyers from 14 companies including Axiom Films, Bluebell Films, Dogwoof Pictures, Reel Rights and the TLA Entertainment Group, along with U.K.-based representatives from Paramount, Paramount Vantage, Weinstein and Miramax.