Spanish is the second most spoken language in the world after Mandarin, with over 400 million native speakers.

And as crazy as it might sound, there are now more people speaking Spanish in the US than in the whole of Spain.

With Spanish being such a widely spoken language, it’s a great one to learn. But learning Spanish words and phrases can only take you so far. You need to be able to understand and respond in conversation.

So read on as we take a look at 7 good Spanish movies that will help you to pick up conversational Spanish rápidamente!

Some Helpful Advice…

Watching these movies or even a small clip from the trailers can seem a very intimidating and overwhelming, but please don’t be!

Just watch the movies with subtitles in English and you’ll pick up a few words for sure. Most likely, you’ll not understand a great percentage of those movies – But Just enjoy them!

1. Como Agua Para Chocolate

This movie is known by its Spanish title even in the US but translates as “like water for chocolate.”

This 1992 movie is based on the novel of the same name written by Mexican novelist Laura Esquivel, who also wrote the screenplay for the movie. It tells the story of a young couple who are in love but cannot marry due to the traditions of the girl’s mother.

When the young man marries the sister of the girl he loves just to be close to her, she turns to cooking as a way of dealing with her emotions, only to discover that these emotions become part of her cooking and affect the people who eat her food.

Packed with real Spanish dialogue, this is a great movie for learning conversational Spanish.

Here is a preview of this movie:

2. Amores Perros

This movie, which was released in 2000, stars well-known Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal.

The title translates literally as “dogs loves” but the meaning is probably something more along the lines of “loves that have gone to the dogs”. Dogs certainly feature throughout the movie.

It is the story of three characters all dealing with the difficulties of life. Their stories interconnect through a car accident. As you can tell, this certainly isn’t a particularly cheerful movie, but it is very moving and certainly thought-provoking.

And weighing in at over two-and-a-half hours, there is a heck of a lot of Spanish for you to pick up; especially some Mexican Spanish.

Check out a clip of this awesome movie below:

3. Volver

Written and directed by Spain’s most well-known director, Pedro Almodovar, this 2006 movie translates as “to go back”.

The movie stars Hollywood superstar Penelope Cruz. Cruz made her name in another great Spanish movie, Jamon Jamon, alongside a young Javier Bardem. In this movie, she plays a member of a family of somewhat crazy women, trying to protect her daughter whilst coping with the death of her own mother.

Since the movie revolves around everyday life in Madrid, this is an ideal movie for learning the language spoken by typical Spanish women.

Check out this trailer of this movie here:

4. Pan’s Labyrinth (El Laberinto Del Fauno)

This 2006 fantasy movie is by Mexican writer-director Guillermo Del Toro.

A young girl, obsessed with fairy tales, meets a fairy who takes her to the center of a labyrinth. There she meets a faun, who tells her that she must complete three tasks in order to become an immortal princess.

This is set against the backdrop of the real world of Spain during World War 2. This combination of war movie with fairytale makes this a truly gripping movie packed with some great vocabulary for you to pick up. You’ll surely get a little familiar with the Spaniard accent & slang in this movie.

You may need the subtitles on to help with some of the mythical language.

Check out the trailer…

5. The Sea Inside (Mar Adentro)

This 2005 movie starring Javier Bardem tells the true story of Ramon Sampredo, who campaigned for 30 years for the right to end his own life.

A paraplegic, Sampredo fought to be able to terminate his own life with dignity. The movie explores his relationships with two women who are inspired by his fight. This may not sound like the most uplifting of subject-matter but the movie has a positive message throughout. Indeed, the movie won the 2004 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

Mar Adentro will be sure to keep you gripped to the point that you barely notice how much Spanish you are picking up.

Let’s take a look at the trailer!

6. The Motorcycle Diaries (Diários de motocicleta)

The second movie in our list that features Gael Garcia Bernal, this 2004 biopic tells the story of the man who has adorned a thousand posters: Che Guevara.

This is a fantastic road trip movie about the young Ernesto Guevara taking a motorcycle trip across South America with a friend. What starts out as a buddy movie ends up turning in a coming-of-age story, as we see Che Guevara grow into the man who would achieve such fame.

Since the movie takes in much of South America, it is a great opportunity to pick up the local slang and dialects that will really add color to your Spanish speaking.

Let’s take a look at the trailer!

7. Y Tu Mamá También

This 2001 movie is written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who would go on to direct massive films such as Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and Gravity.

Translating as “and your mother too“. This is another road trip movie, this time featuring two teenage boys traveling with a sexy older woman. Meeting the beautiful woman at a wedding, the boys try to impress her by telling her they are setting off to find a wonderful secret beach. Her own situation convinces her to travel with them, with just one problem: the beach doesn’t exist.

All three characters learn about life, love, friendship, and sex along the way. Since the latter is a core part of the movie, this probably isn’t a movie to watch with your Mom or your granny!

Check out a clip from the movie…

8. Sanky Panky

Sanky Panky is one funny movie! It’s basically a movie about a local dominicano that has an interest in meeting foreign women. This is what the term Sanky Panky describes, a male sex worker, a man you’ll meet in the Dominican Republic and the rest of the Caribbean hanging out on the beach, hotels or anywhere that gives them the chance of scoring with unsuspecting foreign ladies.

This is basically what this story is about, a guy who gets a job a resort, because he is looking for his gringa. We like the fact that the main character is also studying English. There are many parts in the movie where the ‘American’ female characters are speaking to him in English where he doesn’t understand much, and he is doing the same, speaking to them in Spanish.

It’s a great movie to watch if you want to get a better handle on Dominican Spanish especially. Like most of the movies listed above, you don’t have to understand everything, just turn on the subtitles and enjoy, you’re bound to pick up something.

Check out a trailer for this movie…

We Don’t Always Have Time for Good Spanish Movies

Watching good Spanish movies is a great way to learn Spanish, but realistically we don’t all have a couple of hours to spare every day.

That’s where Gritty Spanish comes in. By listening to our crazy and memorable audio stories spoken by real Spanish-speaking voice actors, you will be able to immerse yourself in the language in a fraction of the time.

Following along with the side-by-side English/Spanish transcriptions means that you’ll pick up every word. And you won’t need a spare couple of hours to do it.

If you have any questions about the Gritty Spanish method then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.