TERRA ESTRANGEIRA (FOREIGN LAND) (1996)

In economically unstable Brazil, Paco finds himself grief-stricken, alone and jobless after the death of his mother. Encountering a seemingly caring stranger in a bar, Paco agrees to smuggle goods to Lisbon with the hope that he will be able to continue on to Spain and his mother's birthplace. The transport plunges him into illegal dealings with unsavory and dangerous characters and a relationship with a woman whose life is at risk. TERESA'S PICK: "Love can find its way into the most hopeless of situations."