5 More Minutes Brings a Marriage Stuck on Repeat to San Sebastián

Time keeps slipping backwards for a struggling couple in “5 More Minutes,” which world-premieres in main competition at the San Sebastián Film Festival.

That slot means it is competing for the festival’s top prize, the Golden Shell. The Spanish-language film, titled “5 Minutos Más,” is directed by Javier Ruiz Caldera from a script by Berto Romero, who also stars, according to Variety.

Romero plays one half of a couple trying to mend a frayed marriage. Belén Cuesta plays the other half. Javier Cámara plays Carlos, a property manager.

The story is set at a vacation home in the Girona countryside in Catalonia, Spain. The trip is meant to fix things. Then time starts jumping back five minutes, again and again.

It is a tight loop with no easy exit. Each reset returns the characters to the same stretch of minutes. They must live through it differently.

What makes this stand out is how it is shot. The film is built from five-minute takes, matching the five-minute jumps in the story. It opens and closes with Roy Orbison’s “In Dreams.”

Ruiz Caldera and Romero discussed the film with Variety in an interview ahead of the premiere. For Ruiz Caldera, the selection is a first. “5 minutos más / 5 More Minutes” is his debut in the festival’s Official Competition, according to the San Sebastián Festival. Ruiz Caldera was born in Viladecans in 1976.

The film is described as a Movistar Plus+ Original comedy. It mixes dark comedy with science-fiction and suspense elements, according to Variety.

Behind the camera, the producers are Movistar Plus+, El Terrat, part of The Mediapro Studio, and Ikiru Films. Filmax handles distribution in Spain and international sales, which covers selling screening rights to buyers in other countries.

For viewers, this means the festival premiere comes first. A Spanish cinema release and streaming plans will follow through those companies.