El Sur (film): Difference between revisions
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{{redirect|The South (film)|other film|South (disambiguation)}} |
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{{about|the 1983 Spanish film|other film|Sur (disambiguation)}} |
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{{Infobox film |
{{Infobox film |
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| name = El Sur |
| name = El Sur |
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| producer = [[Elías Querejeta]] |
| producer = [[Elías Querejeta]] |
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| director = [[Víctor Erice]] |
| director = [[Víctor Erice]] |
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| screenplay = Víctor Erice |
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| writer = [[Jose Luis Lopez Linares]]<br>[[Adelaida García Morales]]<ref name="newyorktimes">{{cite news |last=Canby |first=Vincent |date=15 Jan 1988 |title=Film: 'El Sur,' From Spain |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/15/movies/film-el-sur-from-spain.html |work=New York Times |location=New York, NY, USA |access-date=15 Sep 2020}}</ref> |
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| based_on = {{based_on|''El Sur''|[[Adelaida García Morales]]}} |
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| starring = [[Omero Antonutti]]<br>[[Sonsoles Aranguren]]<br>[[Icíar Bollaín]]<br>[[Aurore Clément]] |
| starring = [[Omero Antonutti]]<br>[[Sonsoles Aranguren]]<br>[[Icíar Bollaín]]<br>[[Aurore Clément]] |
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| music = [[Enrique Granados]] |
| music = [[Enrique Granados]] |
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| cinematography = [[José Luis Alcaine]] |
| cinematography = [[José Luis Alcaine]] |
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| editing = [[Pablo González del Amo]] |
| editing = [[Pablo González del Amo]] |
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| released = |
| released = {{Film date|1983|05|19|df=yes}} |
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| runtime = 95 minutes |
| runtime = 95 minutes |
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| country = Spain |
| country = Spain |
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| language = Spanish |
| language = Spanish |
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}} |
}} |
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'''''El Sur''''' ( |
'''''El Sur''''' (''The South'') is a 1983 [[drama film]] directed by Spanish filmmaker [[Victor Erice]], who also wrote the screenplay. The film was produced by [[Elias Querejeta]], and starred [[Icíar Bollaín]] as the adult main character. It is based on [[Adelaida García Morales]]' short novel of the same name. |
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As in the novella, the |
As in the novella, the film takes place solely in the north of Spain. However, the novella picks up where the screenplay leaves off, taking Estrella on a journey to the south of Spain. [[Elías Querejeta]], the film's producer, decided not to allow the filming of the latter 90 minutes, which would have been filmed in the south. Querejeta attributed this to a lack of financing, although neither Erice nor the film's cinematographer, José Luis Alcaine, believed that was the reason. Erice felt the film was incomplete and described it as an "unfinished drama" even though it was well received by critics.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/5759-el-sur-a-complete-incomplete-film |title=El Sur: A Complete Incomplete Film |last=Lindo |first=Elvira |date=21 June 2018 |website=The Criterion Collection |access-date=15 September 2020 |quote=}}</ref> |
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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In 1957, Estrella, a young girl living in northern Spain, awakens to learn her father Agustín has died. Seven years prior, he had worked as a physician and a [[dowser]] who divinely locates underground water using a pendulum. One night, after he returns home, Estrella tries to enter his father's attic but is prevented by her mother Julia. Meanwhile, Estrella is educated by her mother in calligraphy and literature. She learns from Julia that her father had lived in southern Spain—"El Sur"—during his childhood, but left after a dispute with Estrella's grandfather. |
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This film tells the story of a young girl named Estrella (''Sonsoles Aranguren''), living in the north of Spain with her father, Augustin (''Omero Antonutti''), and her mother, Julia (''Lola Cardona''). Her father is a scientist who seemingly has the ability to divine water using a pendulum, but Estrella finds him mysterious. As she's growing up her father shares with her the art of divination, but does not talk about his own childhood. Her grandmother comes to visit, and she learns that during the Spanish Civil War her father and grandfather had a falling out. Her grandfather supported Franco, but her father was a Republican. After the civil war her father vowed he would never return to the south again. Later she sees her father visit a movie theater, then eventually discovers that the films he patronizes all star an actress by the name of Irene Rios (''Aurore Clément''). She later finds out that Rios was her father's sweetheart in the south, and that he is still in love with her.<ref name="newyorktimes"></ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Abou-Jaoude |first=Amir |date=5 Oct 2018 |title=In 'El Sur,' Victor Erice contemplates childhood |url=https://www.stanforddaily.com/2018/10/05/in-el-sur-victor-erice-contemplates-childhood/ |work=The Stanford Daily |location=Stanford, CA, USA |access-date=15 Sep 2020}}</ref> |
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Months pass, and Estrella's grandmother Rosario and her friend Milagros arrive to attend Estrella's [[First Communion]]. One night before bedtime, Milagros explains that during the Spanish Civil War, her grandfather supported [[Francisco Franco]] while Agustín was a [[Republican faction (Spanish Civil War)|Republican]]. When the Civil War ended, and Franco had assumed power, Agustín vowed to never return to the south again. Estrella proceeds with her communion ceremony and dances with her father afterwards. Shortly after, she enters her father's study and finds drawings he had made of his former lover named Irene Ríos. |
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Later, Estrella arrives at a movie theater, and discovers Irene Ríos is an actress whose name is featured on a film poster. She asks a box office clerk for a program, and watches her father walking into the theater to view her film. He leaves early and arrives at a café where he writes a letter to Irene, whose real name is Laura, asking for her whereabouts. Days later, Irene replies curious why he is contacting her after several years. She also details her career struggles and life experiences as an older woman since they stopped dating. Depressed, Agustín leaves but returns home the next morning with no one noticing and stops using his pendulum. In frustration, Estrella hides underneath her bed for several hours, which causes her mother and their maid Casilda to look for her. Julia eventually finds her while Agustín remains isolated. |
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In 1957, Estrella matures into a young teenager. At home, she is being romantically pursued by a young man, nicknamed "El Carioco." She traverses the theater looking for film posters with Irene's name featured, but finds none. Her father invites her to the Grand Hotel where Estrella converses with her father about the night she followed him to the theater and café. She leaves, and sometime later, Agustín dies by suicide near a lakeshore. Estrella finds a receipt of a long-distance telephone call among her father's belongings, but decides to tell no one. She becomes ill, and her mother allows her to stay with her grandmother in southern Spain to recuperate. |
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==Cast== |
==Cast== |
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* [[Omero Antonutti]] - Agustín Arenas |
* [[Omero Antonutti]] - Agustín Arenas |
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==Reception== |
==Reception== |
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[[Vincent Canby]] of ''The New York Times'' highlighted the performances by Omero Antonutti and Icíar Bollaín, but felt the film lacked "a dominating performance like that of [[Ana Torrent]] in [''The Spirit of the Beehive'']. Everything about ''El Sur,'' including the highly theatrical lighting, is so artfully composed that it seems to be more about film making than characters or ideas."<ref>{{cite news |last=Canby |first=Vincent |date=15 January 1988 |title=Film: 'El Sur,' From Spain |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/15/movies/film-el-sur-from-spain.html |work=The New York Times |page=C11 |access-date=15 September 2020}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | The film was entered into the [[1983 Cannes Film Festival]].<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/1376/year/1983.html |title=Festival de Cannes: The South |access-date=2009-06-07| |
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| ⚫ | The film was entered into the [[1983 Cannes Film Festival]].<ref name="festival-cannes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/1376/year/1983.html |title=Festival de Cannes: The South |access-date=2009-06-07 |website=Cannes Film Festival}}</ref> It won the Gold Hugo at the 1983 [[Chicago International Film Festival]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=FilmAffinity |url=https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/award-edition-movie.php?edition-id=chicago_1983&movie-id=725860 |access-date=2022-04-23 |website=FilmAffinity |language=en}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | ''El Sur'' was voted the |
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| ⚫ | ''El Sur'' was voted the eighth-best Spanish film by professionals and critics in a 1996 Spanish cinema centenary.<ref name="Bentley2008">{{cite book|last=Bentley|first=Bernard P. E.|title=A Companion to Spanish Cinema|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M6kRqqwNMm0C&pg=PA319|access-date=12 September 2016|year=2008|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|isbn=978-1-85566-176-9|pages=319–320}}</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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* {{imdb title|0084740}} |
* {{imdb title|0084740}} |
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* {{tcmdb title|id=480894}} |
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{{Víctor Erice}} |
{{Víctor Erice}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sur, El}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sur, El}} |
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[[Category:1983 films]] |
[[Category:1983 films]] |
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| ⚫ | |||
[[Category:1983 drama films]] |
[[Category:1983 drama films]] |
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| ⚫ | |||
[[Category:Spain in fiction]] |
[[Category:Spain in fiction]] |
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[[Category:Films based on Spanish novels]] |
[[Category:Films based on Spanish novels]] |
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[[Category:Films directed by Víctor Erice]] |
[[Category:Films directed by Víctor Erice]] |
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[[Category:Spanish drama films]] |
[[Category:Spanish drama films]] |
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| ⚫ | |||
{{1980s-drama-film-stub}} |
{{1980s-drama-film-stub}} |
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Latest revision as of 21:00, 23 December 2024
| El Sur | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Directed by | Víctor Erice |
| Screenplay by | Víctor Erice |
| Based on | El Sur by Adelaida García Morales |
| Produced by | Elías Querejeta |
| Starring | Omero Antonutti Sonsoles Aranguren Icíar Bollaín Aurore Clément |
| Cinematography | José Luis Alcaine |
| Edited by | Pablo González del Amo |
| Music by | Enrique Granados |
Release date |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | Spain |
| Language | Spanish |
El Sur (The South) is a 1983 drama film directed by Spanish filmmaker Victor Erice, who also wrote the screenplay. The film was produced by Elias Querejeta, and starred Icíar Bollaín as the adult main character. It is based on Adelaida García Morales' short novel of the same name.
As in the novella, the film takes place solely in the north of Spain. However, the novella picks up where the screenplay leaves off, taking Estrella on a journey to the south of Spain. Elías Querejeta, the film's producer, decided not to allow the filming of the latter 90 minutes, which would have been filmed in the south. Querejeta attributed this to a lack of financing, although neither Erice nor the film's cinematographer, José Luis Alcaine, believed that was the reason. Erice felt the film was incomplete and described it as an "unfinished drama" even though it was well received by critics.[1]
Plot
[edit]In 1957, Estrella, a young girl living in northern Spain, awakens to learn her father Agustín has died. Seven years prior, he had worked as a physician and a dowser who divinely locates underground water using a pendulum. One night, after he returns home, Estrella tries to enter his father's attic but is prevented by her mother Julia. Meanwhile, Estrella is educated by her mother in calligraphy and literature. She learns from Julia that her father had lived in southern Spain—"El Sur"—during his childhood, but left after a dispute with Estrella's grandfather.
Months pass, and Estrella's grandmother Rosario and her friend Milagros arrive to attend Estrella's First Communion. One night before bedtime, Milagros explains that during the Spanish Civil War, her grandfather supported Francisco Franco while Agustín was a Republican. When the Civil War ended, and Franco had assumed power, Agustín vowed to never return to the south again. Estrella proceeds with her communion ceremony and dances with her father afterwards. Shortly after, she enters her father's study and finds drawings he had made of his former lover named Irene Ríos.
Later, Estrella arrives at a movie theater, and discovers Irene Ríos is an actress whose name is featured on a film poster. She asks a box office clerk for a program, and watches her father walking into the theater to view her film. He leaves early and arrives at a café where he writes a letter to Irene, whose real name is Laura, asking for her whereabouts. Days later, Irene replies curious why he is contacting her after several years. She also details her career struggles and life experiences as an older woman since they stopped dating. Depressed, Agustín leaves but returns home the next morning with no one noticing and stops using his pendulum. In frustration, Estrella hides underneath her bed for several hours, which causes her mother and their maid Casilda to look for her. Julia eventually finds her while Agustín remains isolated.
In 1957, Estrella matures into a young teenager. At home, she is being romantically pursued by a young man, nicknamed "El Carioco." She traverses the theater looking for film posters with Irene's name featured, but finds none. Her father invites her to the Grand Hotel where Estrella converses with her father about the night she followed him to the theater and café. She leaves, and sometime later, Agustín dies by suicide near a lakeshore. Estrella finds a receipt of a long-distance telephone call among her father's belongings, but decides to tell no one. She becomes ill, and her mother allows her to stay with her grandmother in southern Spain to recuperate.
Cast
[edit]- Omero Antonutti - Agustín Arenas
- Sonsoles Aranguren - Estrella, 8 years
- Icíar Bollaín - Estrella, 15 years
- Aurore Clément - Irene Ríos / Laura
- Lola Cardona - Julia, Agustín's wife
- Rafaela Aparicio - Milagros
- Francisco Merino - Irene Ríos's Co-Star
- María Caro - Casilda
- José Vivó - Grand Hotel barman
- Germaine Montero - Doña Rosario
- José Luis Fernández, El Pirri - El Carioco
Reception
[edit]Vincent Canby of The New York Times highlighted the performances by Omero Antonutti and Icíar Bollaín, but felt the film lacked "a dominating performance like that of Ana Torrent in [The Spirit of the Beehive]. Everything about El Sur, including the highly theatrical lighting, is so artfully composed that it seems to be more about film making than characters or ideas."[2]
The film was entered into the 1983 Cannes Film Festival.[3] It won the Gold Hugo at the 1983 Chicago International Film Festival.[4]
El Sur was voted the eighth-best Spanish film by professionals and critics in a 1996 Spanish cinema centenary.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Lindo, Elvira (21 June 2018). "El Sur: A Complete Incomplete Film". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
- ^ Canby, Vincent (15 January 1988). "Film: 'El Sur,' From Spain". The New York Times. p. C11. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: The South". Cannes Film Festival. Retrieved 2009-06-07.
- ^ "FilmAffinity". FilmAffinity. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
- ^ Bentley, Bernard P. E. (2008). A Companion to Spanish Cinema. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. pp. 319–320. ISBN 978-1-85566-176-9. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
External links
[edit]- El Sur at IMDb
- El Sur at the TCM Movie Database
 | This 1980s drama film–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article related to a Spanish film of the 1980s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |