WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.060 Welcome back to the Deep Dive. We are really 00:00:02.060 --> 00:00:04.280 glad you're here because today we are tackling 00:00:04.280 --> 00:00:10.599 a subject that on paper sounds like it shouldn't 00:00:10.599 --> 00:00:13.679 work. Not at all. Like at all. We are looking 00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:16.719 at a piece of art that manages to blend two genres 00:00:16.719 --> 00:00:20.440 that are usually, well, they're mortal enemies. 00:00:20.859 --> 00:00:23.600 I'm talking about slapstick comedy. We're talking 00:00:23.600 --> 00:00:28.210 vaudeville, pratfalls, and... Yes, literal fart 00:00:28.210 --> 00:00:31.050 jokes mashed up against the incredibly grim, 00:00:31.210 --> 00:00:33.789 deadly, serious backdrop of the Spanish Civil 00:00:33.789 --> 00:00:36.570 War. It sounds like a complete oxymoron, doesn't 00:00:36.570 --> 00:00:37.990 it? It feels like those two things should just 00:00:37.990 --> 00:00:39.929 repel each other like magnets. Right. Usually 00:00:39.929 --> 00:00:41.750 when we sit down to analyze cinema about the 00:00:41.750 --> 00:00:43.670 Spanish Civil War, we are, you know, bracing 00:00:43.670 --> 00:00:45.310 ourselves for something very specific. Absolutely. 00:00:45.710 --> 00:00:48.929 You expect gritty realism. Gritty realism, somber 00:00:48.929 --> 00:00:51.869 political drama. We think of films like Land 00:00:51.869 --> 00:00:55.049 and Freedom or maybe Pan's Labyrinth, where the 00:00:55.049 --> 00:00:57.630 tone is just heavy, dark and tragic from frame 00:00:57.630 --> 00:00:59.909 one. You don't go into a Civil War movie expecting 00:00:59.909 --> 00:01:02.549 a musical variety show featuring a mute sidekick 00:01:02.549 --> 00:01:04.390 and a tenor who plays clowns. classical music 00:01:04.390 --> 00:01:07.109 with his Bono Well. With his digestion, let's 00:01:07.109 --> 00:01:09.609 put it that way. His digestion, yes. You certainly 00:01:09.609 --> 00:01:11.489 don't. Certainly don't. And yet that contradiction 00:01:11.489 --> 00:01:14.510 is exactly why we're here. That friction between 00:01:14.510 --> 00:01:17.409 the lowbrow humor and the high stakes tragedy 00:01:17.409 --> 00:01:20.909 is the engine of today's subject. Okay, so what 00:01:20.909 --> 00:01:23.310 are we diving into? We're diving deep into the 00:01:23.310 --> 00:01:27.650 1990 masterpiece, I, Carmela, directed by the 00:01:27.650 --> 00:01:31.359 legendary Carlos Sora. And before anyone dismisses 00:01:31.359 --> 00:01:33.680 this as some obscure, you know, experimental 00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:36.340 art film, we really need to look at the scoreboard. 00:01:36.359 --> 00:01:38.640 Oh, absolutely. This wasn't some fringe project 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:41.000 that nobody saw. This movie was a juggernaut 00:01:41.000 --> 00:01:43.540 in Spain. A juggernaut. Yeah. We're talking about 00:01:43.540 --> 00:01:45.900 a film that absolutely swept the Goya Awards. 00:01:46.219 --> 00:01:48.099 And for our listeners who might not be tuned 00:01:48.099 --> 00:01:51.950 into the Spanish film scene, the Goyas are. They're 00:01:51.950 --> 00:01:54.049 essentially the Spanish Oscars. They are. And 00:01:54.049 --> 00:01:56.170 this film was a cultural phenomenon. In 1991, 00:01:56.430 --> 00:01:58.730 it took home Best Film, Best Director for Sora, 00:01:58.989 --> 00:02:01.329 Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay. 00:02:01.370 --> 00:02:03.650 I mean... It just cleaned house. It dominated 00:02:03.650 --> 00:02:06.030 the conversation. Which really implies that it 00:02:06.030 --> 00:02:08.870 struck a massive nerve. It wasn't just funny 00:02:08.870 --> 00:02:11.629 and it wasn't just sad. It was saying something 00:02:11.629 --> 00:02:14.710 about the war and specifically about how we remember 00:02:14.710 --> 00:02:18.229 the war that maybe hadn't been articulated quite 00:02:18.229 --> 00:02:20.990 that way before. Precisely. It tackles a theme 00:02:20.990 --> 00:02:23.689 that I think is just fascinating at the role 00:02:23.689 --> 00:02:28.289 of the artist in wartime, but not the noble artist 00:02:28.289 --> 00:02:30.650 you see in propaganda posters. You know, the 00:02:30.650 --> 00:02:33.879 one writing... Manifestos or charging the barricades 00:02:33.879 --> 00:02:35.860 with a rifle. Right. These are not the heroes 00:02:35.860 --> 00:02:38.740 of the revolution. No, this is about the survivalist 00:02:38.740 --> 00:02:41.060 artist, the entertainer who just wants to eat, 00:02:41.120 --> 00:02:43.379 the one who is trying to figure out what happens 00:02:43.379 --> 00:02:45.759 to your dignity when the front lines shift overnight 00:02:45.759 --> 00:02:47.840 and suddenly you're standing on the wrong side 00:02:47.840 --> 00:02:50.039 of the fence. That's a great question. It asks 00:02:50.039 --> 00:02:52.740 a very difficult question. Is it possible to 00:02:52.740 --> 00:02:55.360 keep your integrity when survival demands you 00:02:55.360 --> 00:02:58.159 become a clown for the enemy? And that is the 00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:01.469 core tension we are going to unpack today. It's 00:03:01.469 --> 00:03:05.449 about survival versus dignity. We have a massive 00:03:05.449 --> 00:03:07.169 stack of sources to get through. We've got the 00:03:07.169 --> 00:03:10.009 film's production history, a deep analysis of 00:03:10.009 --> 00:03:12.430 the plot, the critical reception, and some really 00:03:12.430 --> 00:03:14.330 interesting background on the historical context 00:03:14.330 --> 00:03:16.650 of the songs used in the movie. A lot to get 00:03:16.650 --> 00:03:19.889 through. A lot. Our mission is to explore how 00:03:19.889 --> 00:03:22.389 this film walks that tightrope without falling 00:03:22.389 --> 00:03:25.750 off. So are you ready to head back to 1938? I 00:03:25.750 --> 00:03:28.050 am. Let's set the stage. Okay, let's unpack this. 00:03:28.129 --> 00:03:30.969 The year is 1938. This is a crucial timestamp. 00:03:31.030 --> 00:03:33.370 We aren't at the beginning of the war where there 00:03:33.370 --> 00:03:36.310 is all this revolutionary optimism. No, not at 00:03:36.310 --> 00:03:39.509 all. This is the endgame, essentially. The Republican 00:03:39.509 --> 00:03:42.069 side, which is the democratically elected government, 00:03:42.229 --> 00:03:44.590 the leftists, the anarchists, the anti -fascists, 00:03:44.629 --> 00:03:48.199 they are losing ground rapidly. Crumbling. It 00:03:48.199 --> 00:03:50.639 is. Franco's nationalist forces are closing in. 00:03:50.680 --> 00:03:52.659 The mood isn't, we're going to win. The mood 00:03:52.659 --> 00:03:54.620 is, how much longer can we hold on? And supplies 00:03:54.620 --> 00:03:57.719 are non -existent. Morale is, well, it's in the 00:03:57.719 --> 00:04:00.300 basement. And in the middle of this collapse, 00:04:00.500 --> 00:04:02.939 we are introduced to our protagonists, a trio 00:04:02.939 --> 00:04:05.240 of traveling entertainers. Let's meet the troupe. 00:04:05.620 --> 00:04:08.120 Central to this entire narrative is the dynamic 00:04:08.120 --> 00:04:10.979 between these three specific characters. First 00:04:10.979 --> 00:04:13.400 and foremost, you have Carmela, played by the 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:16.519 absolute powerhouse, Carmen Mora. She is just 00:04:16.519 --> 00:04:19.399 magnetic in this role. Unbelievable. He is the 00:04:19.399 --> 00:04:22.360 heart and soul of the group. She sings, she dances, 00:04:22.399 --> 00:04:26.220 and she possesses this raw, undeniable humanity. 00:04:26.860 --> 00:04:30.500 She is earthy in the best sense of the word. 00:04:30.699 --> 00:04:33.980 She feels things deeply. She represents the emotional 00:04:33.980 --> 00:04:36.800 core of the Republican spirit. A bit chaotic, 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:39.660 very passionate, and deeply empathetic. And then 00:04:39.660 --> 00:04:42.519 you have her partner, Paulino. played by Andres 00:04:42.519 --> 00:04:45.420 Pajaras. Now, Polino is, well, he's a different 00:04:45.420 --> 00:04:47.740 animal entirely, isn't he? He is. Polino is the 00:04:47.740 --> 00:04:50.319 pragmatist. He considers himself an artist. He 00:04:50.319 --> 00:04:52.720 reads poetry. He tries to maintain this air of 00:04:52.720 --> 00:04:55.319 artistic dignity and sophistication. He wants 00:04:55.319 --> 00:04:57.800 to be seen as a serious performer. But the reality 00:04:57.800 --> 00:05:00.170 of their act is... A little less sophisticated. 00:05:00.449 --> 00:05:02.430 Right, because despite all his pretensions, his 00:05:02.430 --> 00:05:04.410 big talent, the thing that actually brings a 00:05:04.410 --> 00:05:06.730 house down and gets them paid, he plays tunes 00:05:06.730 --> 00:05:09.550 with his farts. I mean, we have to pause on that 00:05:09.550 --> 00:05:11.970 for a second. It's such a specific choice by 00:05:11.970 --> 00:05:14.250 the filmmakers. You have this guy reciting poetry 00:05:14.250 --> 00:05:17.709 one minute and doing flatulence -based musical 00:05:17.709 --> 00:05:20.810 numbers the next. Right. Why include that? Is 00:05:20.810 --> 00:05:23.360 it just for a cheap laugh? I don't think so. 00:05:23.439 --> 00:05:25.720 I really don't. I think it serves a very specific 00:05:25.720 --> 00:05:29.279 narrative purpose. It grounds them. It completely 00:05:29.279 --> 00:05:31.899 strips away any romanticism about who these people 00:05:31.899 --> 00:05:35.220 are. They are hungry. They are poor. And their 00:05:35.220 --> 00:05:37.980 bodies are their only currency. It emphasizes 00:05:37.980 --> 00:05:40.519 the physical reality of their existence. It's 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:43.519 lowbrow, yes, but it's also defiant in a way. 00:05:43.600 --> 00:05:45.540 It's the humor of the trenches. The humor of 00:05:45.540 --> 00:05:48.279 survival. Exactly. And then rounding out the 00:05:48.279 --> 00:05:51.980 trio is Gustavette, played by Gabino Diego. And 00:05:51.980 --> 00:05:54.720 Gestadete is fascinating because he is a mute. 00:05:54.879 --> 00:05:57.459 He communicates entirely through writing on a 00:05:57.459 --> 00:05:59.379 slate chalkboard that he carries around his neck. 00:05:59.500 --> 00:06:01.560 He's the third wheel, but he's also crucial, 00:06:01.800 --> 00:06:04.500 isn't he? He is the witness. In narrative terms, 00:06:04.660 --> 00:06:07.259 he represents the innocent observer. He can't 00:06:07.259 --> 00:06:09.759 speak. He can only watch and record. In a way, 00:06:09.759 --> 00:06:11.899 he's a stand -in for the audience or perhaps 00:06:11.899 --> 00:06:14.300 for the future generations looking back at the 00:06:14.300 --> 00:06:17.420 war, unable to intervene, just watching the horror 00:06:17.420 --> 00:06:20.930 unfold. So we have this motley crew. And they 00:06:20.930 --> 00:06:23.189 are touring on the Republican side of the conflict. 00:06:23.810 --> 00:06:27.430 The film opens in a town called Montejo. And 00:06:27.430 --> 00:06:29.769 I want you to describe the vibe of that opening 00:06:29.769 --> 00:06:31.470 performance for us, because I think it tells 00:06:31.470 --> 00:06:34.430 us everything we need to know about their world. 00:06:34.550 --> 00:06:37.050 It's a scene of desperate normalcy. They are 00:06:37.050 --> 00:06:38.970 performing for Republican troops in what looks 00:06:38.970 --> 00:06:41.870 like a town square or a bombed out theater. But 00:06:41.870 --> 00:06:44.750 the war isn't some distant concept. It is literally 00:06:44.750 --> 00:06:47.170 overhead. Yeah, that sound design is incredible. 00:06:47.470 --> 00:06:50.170 It is. Nationalist planes are droning above the 00:06:50.170 --> 00:06:52.089 theater during the show. You can hear the engines, 00:06:52.189 --> 00:06:54.250 the distant explosions. It creates this incredible 00:06:54.250 --> 00:06:56.790 tension. You're watching a comedy routine, but 00:06:56.790 --> 00:06:58.569 you're flinching every time the sound makes shifts. 00:06:58.670 --> 00:07:01.949 Yeah. But nobody leaves. No one leaves. And that's 00:07:01.949 --> 00:07:03.490 the power of the entertainment. The audience 00:07:03.490 --> 00:07:07.290 is captivated. Carmela represents... Justice 00:07:07.290 --> 00:07:10.129 or the Republic in a tableau vivant, you know, 00:07:10.129 --> 00:07:13.029 wrapped in the flag. Paulino is waving the Republican 00:07:13.029 --> 00:07:16.329 colors. They are singing songs of freedom. It 00:07:16.329 --> 00:07:19.670 is a mix of genuine patriotic fervor. And as 00:07:19.670 --> 00:07:22.589 we mentioned, very, very lowbrow humor. It feels 00:07:22.589 --> 00:07:25.720 like a coping mechanism. A huge one. Absolutely. 00:07:25.800 --> 00:07:28.060 It's collective therapy. They are laughing at 00:07:28.060 --> 00:07:30.100 the fart jokes because if they stop laughing, 00:07:30.220 --> 00:07:32.060 the reality that they might die tomorrow just 00:07:32.060 --> 00:07:34.759 crashes in. They are singing the patriotic songs 00:07:34.759 --> 00:07:37.220 to remind themselves why they are fighting, even 00:07:37.220 --> 00:07:39.620 as they are losing. But things take a turn pretty 00:07:39.620 --> 00:07:42.660 quickly. The performance ends. The reality sets 00:07:42.660 --> 00:07:45.680 in. They decide that the front lines are getting 00:07:45.680 --> 00:07:48.259 a little too close for comfort. This is the inciting 00:07:48.259 --> 00:07:50.000 incident. They decide they've had enough of the 00:07:50.000 --> 00:07:52.180 front. They want to flee to Valencia, which was 00:07:52.180 --> 00:07:54.519 still a Republican stronghold, you know, further 00:07:54.519 --> 00:07:56.699 from the immediate fighting. They just want safety. 00:07:56.839 --> 00:07:59.579 They want safety. But to get to Valencia, they 00:07:59.579 --> 00:08:03.759 need supplies, specifically fuel. And this leads 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:06.060 to a scene that really establishes the lengths 00:08:06.060 --> 00:08:08.620 they will go to. They don't have money. They 00:08:08.620 --> 00:08:12.339 don't have authorization. So Carmela has to distract 00:08:12.339 --> 00:08:15.279 a Republican truck driver so the guys can steal 00:08:15.279 --> 00:08:18.180 gasoline. It's a scene that is played for a comedy, 00:08:18.300 --> 00:08:20.759 but the undercurrent is quite dark, isn't it? 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:23.360 She allows the driver to get a little handsy. 00:08:23.399 --> 00:08:25.800 A little that. She flirts. She lets him touch 00:08:25.800 --> 00:08:28.660 her. It really shows the desperation. And it 00:08:28.660 --> 00:08:31.360 also shows the dynamic between Paulino and Carmela. 00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:33.899 Paulino is okay with pimping her out, essentially, 00:08:33.899 --> 00:08:36.639 if it gets them the gas. Exactly. It establishes 00:08:36.639 --> 00:08:38.919 Paulino's moral flexibility right from the start. 00:08:39.039 --> 00:08:41.100 He is willing to compromise Carmela's dignity 00:08:41.100 --> 00:08:44.720 for their survival. It's a precursor, a foreshadowing 00:08:44.720 --> 00:08:47.559 of the much - larger, darker compromises that 00:08:47.559 --> 00:08:49.620 are coming later in the film. So they get the 00:08:49.620 --> 00:08:52.120 gas, they steal it, they pile into their beat 00:08:52.120 --> 00:08:55.279 -up truck. Gustavettes, the props, the costumes, 00:08:55.320 --> 00:08:58.000 and that massive Republican flag, and they drive 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:00.279 off into the night. And here the film utilizes 00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:03.799 a very classic narrative device, the fog. Literally 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:07.720 and metaphorically. Yes, the fog of war. They 00:09:07.720 --> 00:09:10.580 are driving through a misty night trying to navigate 00:09:10.580 --> 00:09:13.720 these treacherous unmarked roads. They're arguing. 00:09:13.899 --> 00:09:16.519 They're tired. They're stressed. They lose their 00:09:16.519 --> 00:09:18.960 bearings completely. And when the sun comes up, 00:09:18.980 --> 00:09:22.629 the fog lifts. And they see a checkpoint. They 00:09:22.629 --> 00:09:24.929 think, oh, thank God, it's our guys. They drive 00:09:24.929 --> 00:09:27.230 up smiling, ready to maybe do a quick number 00:09:27.230 --> 00:09:29.149 to get through. And then they see the uniforms. 00:09:29.490 --> 00:09:31.690 And the uniforms are not Republican. They have 00:09:31.690 --> 00:09:34.090 stumbled directly into nationalist territory. 00:09:34.450 --> 00:09:36.950 They have crossed the lines without even realizing 00:09:36.950 --> 00:09:39.210 it. And the worst part is they are traveling 00:09:39.210 --> 00:09:41.950 with their prox. Which is the worst possible 00:09:41.950 --> 00:09:44.590 luggage to have at that moment. A nationalist 00:09:44.590 --> 00:09:47.730 officer stops them, looks in the back and finds 00:09:47.730 --> 00:09:51.110 a massive Republican flag. That is it. Game over. 00:09:51.250 --> 00:09:53.230 It's an immediate death sentence in most cases. 00:09:53.429 --> 00:09:55.409 They're detained on the spot. In the blink of 00:09:55.409 --> 00:09:57.750 an eye, they go from being celebrated entertainers 00:09:57.750 --> 00:09:59.950 of the Republic to prisoners of the fascists. 00:10:00.070 --> 00:10:02.210 This is where the movie shifts gears violently. 00:10:03.090 --> 00:10:06.009 We go from a road trip comedy to something much, 00:10:06.049 --> 00:10:08.429 much darker. They are taken to a local schoolhouse. 00:10:08.870 --> 00:10:11.750 But as is so common in Civil War narratives, 00:10:12.049 --> 00:10:14.070 the school is no longer a place of learning. 00:10:14.480 --> 00:10:17.299 No. It has been converted into a makeshift prison 00:10:17.299 --> 00:10:19.899 for Republican sympathizers, captured soldiers, 00:10:20.080 --> 00:10:23.120 and anyone else the nationalists deemed undesirable. 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:25.820 And the film doesn't shy away from the reality 00:10:25.820 --> 00:10:29.100 of this. It's grim. It's crowded. It smells of 00:10:29.100 --> 00:10:31.720 fear and unwashed bodies. And the threat isn't 00:10:31.720 --> 00:10:34.740 abstract at all. Not at all. Prisoners are periodically 00:10:34.740 --> 00:10:37.419 taken away. You hear a name called. A person 00:10:37.419 --> 00:10:39.779 is dragged out. Then you hear the truck engine 00:10:39.779 --> 00:10:41.840 start. Then a few minutes later, you hear the 00:10:41.840 --> 00:10:44.700 volley of gunfire. Oh, man. Then the truck comes 00:10:44.700 --> 00:10:47.159 back empty. It's industrialized death. It's rhythmic. 00:10:47.340 --> 00:10:50.340 And amidst this horror, while Paulino is practically 00:10:50.340 --> 00:10:52.720 hyperventilating trying to explain that we're 00:10:52.720 --> 00:10:55.080 just actors, we're not political, Carmela does 00:10:55.080 --> 00:10:56.639 something interesting. She makes a connection. 00:10:56.919 --> 00:10:59.460 She does. She befriends a prisoner from the International 00:10:59.460 --> 00:11:03.419 Brigade, specifically a Polish soldier. Now, 00:11:03.440 --> 00:11:05.100 for our listeners who might need a refresher, 00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.120 can we quickly touch on who the International 00:11:07.120 --> 00:11:10.159 Brigades were? Of course. These were volunteers. 00:11:11.000 --> 00:11:14.620 civilians mostly, from all over the world. Americans, 00:11:14.779 --> 00:11:18.500 British, French, Polish, you name it. They traveled 00:11:18.500 --> 00:11:20.759 to Spain to fight against fascism. They weren't 00:11:20.759 --> 00:11:23.759 conscripted. They chose to be there out of ideological 00:11:23.759 --> 00:11:26.539 commitment. And Carmela is just blown away by 00:11:26.539 --> 00:11:28.480 this guy. She is. She can't wrap her head around 00:11:28.480 --> 00:11:31.559 it. Here is a nan who traveled across a continent 00:11:31.559 --> 00:11:34.240 to a foreign land to fight and potentially die 00:11:34.240 --> 00:11:36.840 for a country whose name he can't even pronounce 00:11:36.840 --> 00:11:39.179 properly. He barely speaks Spanish. It's that 00:11:39.179 --> 00:11:42.120 contrast again. Polino is just trying to survive, 00:11:42.220 --> 00:11:44.879 to sneak away, to be a chameleon. And here's 00:11:44.879 --> 00:11:47.980 this Polish soldier who chose to be there out 00:11:47.980 --> 00:11:50.799 of pure idealism. It creates a moral anchor for 00:11:50.799 --> 00:11:53.299 Carmela. This relationship, and it's not really 00:11:53.299 --> 00:11:55.259 a romance in the traditional sense, it's a connection 00:11:55.259 --> 00:11:58.639 of souls, becomes the emotional core of the film. 00:11:58.740 --> 00:12:00.899 It reminds her of the stakes. It reminds her 00:12:00.899 --> 00:12:02.740 that the Republic isn't just a flag in their 00:12:02.740 --> 00:12:05.440 prop box or a gig that pays the bills. It's something 00:12:05.440 --> 00:12:08.000 people are dying for. It completely changes her 00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:10.600 perspective on what they do. Completely. Before 00:12:10.600 --> 00:12:13.179 this, the flag was a prop. After meeting him, 00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:16.240 the flag becomes a symbol. So Kenshin's are high 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:18.840 in the schoolhouse. It's a waiting game. And 00:12:18.840 --> 00:12:21.799 then the inevitable happens. The trio is selected. 00:12:22.120 --> 00:12:24.700 Their names are called. They are dragged out, 00:12:24.740 --> 00:12:27.440 put in an army car, and driven away. At this 00:12:27.440 --> 00:12:30.100 point, the audience and the characters are 100 00:12:30.100 --> 00:12:32.620 % convinced they're being taken to a wall to 00:12:32.620 --> 00:12:34.559 be shot. You're just waiting for the sound of 00:12:34.559 --> 00:12:37.600 the guns. But then comes the twist. They aren't 00:12:37.600 --> 00:12:39.679 taken to a ditch. They're taken to a theater. 00:12:40.200 --> 00:12:42.539 A beautiful local theater in the nationalist 00:12:42.539 --> 00:12:44.860 -controlled town. And this is where we meet our 00:12:44.860 --> 00:12:47.980 antagonist. Or, I guess, our patron, depending 00:12:47.980 --> 00:12:50.379 on how you look at it. Enter Lieutenant Emilio 00:12:50.379 --> 00:12:53.120 di Ripamonte. An Italian officer. Right. Italy 00:12:53.120 --> 00:12:55.539 under Mussolini was a major supporter of Franco, 00:12:55.639 --> 00:12:58.940 sending troops and supplies. But Lieutenant Ripamonte 00:12:58.940 --> 00:13:01.940 is a very specific type of villain. He isn't 00:13:01.940 --> 00:13:03.960 a brute. He isn't screaming or beating them. 00:13:04.299 --> 00:13:06.980 He's a theater director. He's an artist. He's 00:13:06.980 --> 00:13:10.620 a man of culture. He despises the Spanish fascists 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:12.759 he is working with. He thinks they are crude 00:13:12.759 --> 00:13:15.539 and unrefined. When he finds out Carmela and 00:13:15.539 --> 00:13:18.200 Paulino are variety performers, he doesn't see 00:13:18.200 --> 00:13:21.019 Reds to be executed. He sees colleagues. He sees 00:13:21.019 --> 00:13:23.559 colleagues, but that doesn't mean he's nice. 00:13:23.879 --> 00:13:26.200 No, I imagine it makes him more dangerous. In 00:13:26.200 --> 00:13:29.370 a way, yes. Because he wants to use them. He 00:13:29.370 --> 00:13:31.990 has a proposition. He explains that the nationalist 00:13:31.990 --> 00:13:34.529 troops are bored. They need entertainment. He 00:13:34.529 --> 00:13:37.230 wants to stage a show. A variety show for the 00:13:37.230 --> 00:13:39.570 liberation or some kind of propaganda piece like 00:13:39.570 --> 00:13:41.769 that. Exactly. And he offers them a bargain. 00:13:41.850 --> 00:13:44.049 If they perform for the nationalist troops, he 00:13:44.049 --> 00:13:46.269 will guarantee their safety. He will save their 00:13:46.269 --> 00:13:49.080 lives. But there is a catch. A big one. It can't 00:13:49.080 --> 00:13:51.860 just be any variety show. He has written a sketch. 00:13:52.159 --> 00:13:54.740 A specific satirical sketch that mocks the Republic. 00:13:55.120 --> 00:13:57.820 He wants them to go on stage and humiliate the 00:13:57.820 --> 00:14:00.019 very cause they were representing just a few 00:14:00.019 --> 00:14:02.919 days ago. So the deal is, make fun of everything 00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:05.379 you stood for, make fun of your friends, spit 00:14:05.379 --> 00:14:08.399 on your own flag, and I won't kill you. That 00:14:08.399 --> 00:14:10.799 is the Faustian bargain, freedom in exchange 00:14:10.799 --> 00:14:13.000 for a performance. But it's a performance that 00:14:13.000 --> 00:14:15.399 requires a total betrayal of their identity. 00:14:15.700 --> 00:14:17.779 And this sets up the central conflict of the 00:14:17.779 --> 00:14:20.360 next segment. Paulino and Carmela have very, 00:14:20.399 --> 00:14:22.320 very different reactions to this, don't they? 00:14:22.379 --> 00:14:24.820 They do. And if we connect this to the bigger 00:14:24.820 --> 00:14:27.779 picture, it really dramatizes the two common 00:14:27.779 --> 00:14:31.039 responses to totalitarian pressure. You either 00:14:31.039 --> 00:14:34.279 comply or you resist. Let's look at Paulino first. 00:14:34.879 --> 00:14:37.179 How does he handle the news? Paulino is the ultimate 00:14:37.179 --> 00:14:39.799 pragmatist. He immediately switches into survival 00:14:39.799 --> 00:14:42.259 mode. He doesn't even hesitate. He starts rewriting 00:14:42.259 --> 00:14:44.580 their old script right there and then. He's taking 00:14:44.580 --> 00:14:46.240 the numbers that used to celebrate the Republic 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:48.960 and twisting them to be anti -Republican. He's 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:50.759 the guy who says, look, it's just a show. It's 00:14:50.759 --> 00:14:53.720 just acting. We say the lines. They laugh. We 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:56.000 survive. It doesn't mean anything. Precisely. 00:14:56.100 --> 00:14:59.500 For him, the art is a tool. It has no intrinsic 00:14:59.500 --> 00:15:02.279 moral weight if it means getting shot. He separates 00:15:02.279 --> 00:15:04.799 the performer from the person. He thinks he can 00:15:04.799 --> 00:15:06.960 wear the mask without it sticking to his face. 00:15:07.100 --> 00:15:11.240 But Carmela, Carmela can't do that. No. She resists. 00:15:11.440 --> 00:15:14.600 She digs her heels in. She absolutely refuses 00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:17.259 to betray her anti -fascist convictions. She 00:15:17.259 --> 00:15:19.779 doesn't want to mock her own beliefs. And more 00:15:19.779 --> 00:15:22.000 importantly, she is thinking of the people back 00:15:22.000 --> 00:15:24.159 in the schoolhouse. She feels that performing 00:15:24.159 --> 00:15:27.320 this show is a betrayal of them. A personal betrayal. 00:15:27.539 --> 00:15:30.399 A deeply personal betrayal. There is a real tension 00:15:30.399 --> 00:15:33.519 there. Paulino essentially has to beg her. He 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:35.159 has to convince her that they literally have 00:15:35.159 --> 00:15:37.740 no choice. It is life or death. And he wears 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:40.629 her down. He wears her down. Reluctantly, painfully, 00:15:40.730 --> 00:15:43.549 she agrees. But you can feel that she's doing 00:15:43.549 --> 00:15:46.129 it under extreme duress. She's just simmering 00:15:46.129 --> 00:15:48.629 with rage and shame. And to make matters even 00:15:48.629 --> 00:15:51.450 worse, the film piles on the physical misery. 00:15:51.570 --> 00:15:53.330 I think this is such a brilliant touch by Sora. 00:15:53.549 --> 00:15:55.610 The day of the show arrives and they aren't just 00:15:55.610 --> 00:15:58.169 morally conflicted. They're physically falling 00:15:58.169 --> 00:16:00.669 apart. It creates a visceral sense of discomfort. 00:16:01.009 --> 00:16:03.570 Carmela has her period. Which, again, in 1938, 00:16:03.870 --> 00:16:07.549 in a war zone. That's not a minor inconvenience. 00:16:07.629 --> 00:16:09.889 No, it's a nightmare. It makes her feel vulnerable, 00:16:10.210 --> 00:16:13.070 irritable, and physically in pain. It grounds 00:16:13.070 --> 00:16:15.330 her suffering in the body, not just an ideology. 00:16:15.769 --> 00:16:18.230 And what about Paulino? Paulino has a terrible 00:16:18.230 --> 00:16:21.409 stomach ache. He is cramping up. Why? Because 00:16:21.409 --> 00:16:23.370 they ate a rabbit for dinner the night before? 00:16:23.649 --> 00:16:27.389 Ah, the famous rabbit. Which turns out not to 00:16:27.389 --> 00:16:30.389 be a rabbit. Gustavetti, ever the truth teller, 00:16:30.409 --> 00:16:33.289 confirms on his slate that the rabbit was actually 00:16:33.289 --> 00:16:36.559 a cat. That is such a dark joke. It's funny, 00:16:36.620 --> 00:16:39.480 but it's also just disgusting. It really grounds 00:16:39.480 --> 00:16:42.399 the high -minded moral conflict in the gritty 00:16:42.399 --> 00:16:45.879 reality of hunger and poverty. You know, you 00:16:45.879 --> 00:16:48.480 can't be a noble hero when you are digesting 00:16:48.480 --> 00:16:51.340 a stray cat and trying not to throw up. It strips 00:16:51.340 --> 00:16:54.220 away the glamour of acting. They're just wretched, 00:16:54.299 --> 00:16:56.860 sick people trying to survive. So the curtain 00:16:56.860 --> 00:16:59.080 is about to go up. They are backstage, miserable. 00:16:59.340 --> 00:17:02.139 The theater is packed. Who is in the audience? 00:17:02.320 --> 00:17:04.440 The stalls are filled with nationalist troops, 00:17:04.660 --> 00:17:07.440 officers, the Italian dignitaries. They are rowdy, 00:17:07.460 --> 00:17:09.240 they are drunk on victory, and they are ready 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:11.599 to mock the enemy. But that's not the whole audience, 00:17:11.619 --> 00:17:14.059 is it? There's a darker layer to this. No. And 00:17:14.059 --> 00:17:16.480 this is the ultimate cruelty of Lieutenant Ripamonte. 00:17:16.700 --> 00:17:18.759 In the galleries, looking down on the stage, 00:17:18.960 --> 00:17:21.160 he has brought in the prisoners of war. The very 00:17:21.160 --> 00:17:23.400 same people they were locked up with. Including 00:17:23.400 --> 00:17:26.339 the Polish soldiers Carmela befriended. They 00:17:26.339 --> 00:17:28.180 have been brought there to watch their own ideals 00:17:28.180 --> 00:17:31.140 being mocked. They are forced spectators to their 00:17:31.140 --> 00:17:34.900 own humiliation. That destroys Carmela. It's 00:17:34.900 --> 00:17:36.559 one thing to make fun of the Republic in front 00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:38.039 of a bunch of fascists who are going to laugh 00:17:38.039 --> 00:17:40.940 anyway. It's another thing entirely to do it 00:17:40.940 --> 00:17:42.740 while looking into the eyes of the people you 00:17:42.740 --> 00:17:45.579 respect. Precisely. It personalizes the betrayal. 00:17:46.180 --> 00:17:49.019 She isn't just betraying an abstract idea. She 00:17:49.019 --> 00:17:51.539 is betraying him, the Polish soldier, right to 00:17:51.539 --> 00:17:54.680 his face. She knows he is watching her. So the 00:17:54.680 --> 00:17:57.819 show must go on. Let's talk about this final 00:17:57.819 --> 00:18:00.720 performance. Because the structure of it is really 00:18:00.720 --> 00:18:03.599 interesting. It mirrors their old act, but it's 00:18:03.599 --> 00:18:06.259 twisted. It's a funhouse mirror version of their 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:09.700 previous show. Musical numbers, poetry. But now, 00:18:09.819 --> 00:18:11.740 instead of Paulino reading the poem, it's the 00:18:11.740 --> 00:18:13.619 lieutenant reading it. Oh, that's a nice touch. 00:18:13.819 --> 00:18:15.839 Yeah, the authority has shifted. The tone is 00:18:15.839 --> 00:18:18.200 mean -spirited. And then we get to the main event. 00:18:18.460 --> 00:18:21.039 The sketch that Ripamonte wrote. The Republic 00:18:21.039 --> 00:18:23.410 goes to the doctor. This is a piece of satire 00:18:23.410 --> 00:18:25.849 designed to be as offensive as possible to the 00:18:25.849 --> 00:18:29.170 Republican cause. Paulino plays a doctor, specifically, 00:18:29.390 --> 00:18:32.529 a gay Republican doctor, playing into all the 00:18:32.529 --> 00:18:35.009 homophobic stereotypes the Nationalists held 00:18:35.009 --> 00:18:38.349 about the degenerate left. Wow. And Carmela plays 00:18:38.349 --> 00:18:41.470 the Spanish Republic herself. A female patient. 00:18:41.750 --> 00:18:44.470 Dressed in the flag. Right. She's dressed in 00:18:44.470 --> 00:18:47.650 the Republican colors, but tattered. And Gustavette 00:18:47.650 --> 00:18:50.089 plays her Russian lover. Which plays into the 00:18:50.089 --> 00:18:52.329 nationalist propaganda that the Republic was 00:18:52.329 --> 00:18:54.970 just a puppet of the Soviet Union. Exactly. So 00:18:54.970 --> 00:18:57.470 in the sketch, Carmela, as the Republic, claims 00:18:57.470 --> 00:18:59.670 to be pregnant by the Russian. The content is 00:18:59.670 --> 00:19:02.470 filled with highly offensive sexual innuendos. 00:19:02.470 --> 00:19:05.309 It's degrading. It frames the Republic not as 00:19:05.309 --> 00:19:08.049 a government, but as a whore. And there is a 00:19:08.049 --> 00:19:10.500 specific bit with a thermometer. That seems to 00:19:10.500 --> 00:19:12.799 be the tipping point for her. Yes. The script 00:19:12.799 --> 00:19:15.920 calls for a crude physical gag. Carmela asks 00:19:15.920 --> 00:19:18.420 the doctor to insert a thermometer, and Paulino, 00:19:18.519 --> 00:19:21.019 in character, refuses, claiming it is broken 00:19:21.019 --> 00:19:23.500 or he doesn't want to touch her. It's a lowbrow, 00:19:23.500 --> 00:19:25.740 sexualized joke at the expense of her body and 00:19:25.740 --> 00:19:28.160 the symbol she represents. And this is where 00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:30.579 Carmela breaks. She just can't do it anymore. 00:19:30.940 --> 00:19:33.940 she hits her limit she's looking at paulino who 00:19:33.940 --> 00:19:36.079 is sweating and hamming it up she's looking at 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:38.619 the fascists laughing at her and she looks up 00:19:38.619 --> 00:19:41.579 at the balcony and sees the polish soldiers the 00:19:41.579 --> 00:19:44.680 shame is just too much she starts to sabotage 00:19:44.680 --> 00:19:47.579 the sketch doesn't she she does she stops saying 00:19:47.579 --> 00:19:51.059 her lines correctly she starts mumbling she jeopardizes 00:19:51.059 --> 00:19:53.420 the credibility of the parody the sketch starts 00:19:53.420 --> 00:19:56.440 to disintegrate paulino is panicking trying to 00:19:56.440 --> 00:19:58.559 improvise trying to get her back on script and 00:19:58.559 --> 00:20:01.339 as this is happening on stage the polish prisoners 00:20:01.339 --> 00:20:03.829 in the gallery react. They rise in rebellion. 00:20:04.150 --> 00:20:06.130 They can't take it either. They start shouting. 00:20:06.369 --> 00:20:09.049 They won't sit there and let their cause be mocked. 00:20:09.049 --> 00:20:12.130 The fascist audience becomes enraged. The theater 00:20:12.130 --> 00:20:14.730 turns into a powder keg. Soldiers are pulling 00:20:14.730 --> 00:20:17.109 weapons. And Carmela lights the match. What does 00:20:17.109 --> 00:20:20.190 she do? She breaks character completely. She 00:20:20.190 --> 00:20:23.910 rips off the persona of the whole republic. She 00:20:23.910 --> 00:20:26.549 stands center stage and starts singing, I, Carmela, 00:20:26.690 --> 00:20:29.289 the song of the resistance, the anthem. And she 00:20:29.289 --> 00:20:31.970 does something with the flag. a final defiant 00:20:31.970 --> 00:20:34.450 act she takes that republican flag she is holding 00:20:34.450 --> 00:20:37.130 the prop flag and she lowers her dress to expose 00:20:37.130 --> 00:20:40.990 her breasts whoa that is that is a hell of a 00:20:40.990 --> 00:20:44.170 statement it is a direct shocking act of defiance 00:20:44.170 --> 00:20:47.029 the crowd had been calling her a during the performance 00:20:47.029 --> 00:20:51.309 by exposing herself voluntarily she is reclaiming 00:20:51.309 --> 00:20:54.769 her body she is saying i am here i am real and 00:20:54.769 --> 00:20:57.839 i am not afraid of you It invokes the imagery 00:20:57.839 --> 00:21:00.839 of liberty leading the people, that famous Delacroix 00:21:00.839 --> 00:21:02.960 painting. It's an act of supreme vulnerability 00:21:02.960 --> 00:21:06.119 and supreme power all at once. Yes, she is daring 00:21:06.119 --> 00:21:08.259 them to look at her as a human being. And the 00:21:08.259 --> 00:21:11.240 reaction is instant. What happens? A nationalist 00:21:11.240 --> 00:21:14.180 officer in the stall stands up. He doesn't hesitate. 00:21:14.279 --> 00:21:16.910 He raises a pistol and shoots her. Just like 00:21:16.910 --> 00:21:18.849 that. Just like that. A shot to the forehead. 00:21:19.049 --> 00:21:21.190 That is brutal. It goes from a comedy sketch 00:21:21.190 --> 00:21:23.809 to an execution in a split second. And that is 00:21:23.809 --> 00:21:26.710 the film's thesis in a single moment. The comedy 00:21:26.710 --> 00:21:28.809 cannot protect you from the violence of the war. 00:21:29.009 --> 00:21:31.710 The fart jokes won't save you. Carmela falls 00:21:31.710 --> 00:21:34.150 dead on the stage. And in that moment of horror, 00:21:34.390 --> 00:21:36.990 something miraculous happens with Gustavette. 00:21:37.130 --> 00:21:40.650 In his anguish, seeing Carmela die, the woman 00:21:40.650 --> 00:21:43.589 who was essentially his mother figure, his protector, 00:21:43.809 --> 00:21:47.250 the shock. breaks something in his brain or fixes 00:21:47.250 --> 00:21:50.269 it he suddenly recovers his voice he calls out 00:21:50.269 --> 00:21:53.410 the mute speaks he screams her name but it's 00:21:53.410 --> 00:21:56.069 tragic irony isn't it he finds his voice only 00:21:56.069 --> 00:21:58.509 when it is too late to use it to save her man 00:21:58.509 --> 00:22:02.809 that is heavy so what is the aftermath how does 00:22:02.809 --> 00:22:05.799 the movie leave us It's a quiet, devastating 00:22:05.799 --> 00:22:09.559 epilogue. We see Paulino and Gustavetti at Carmela's 00:22:09.559 --> 00:22:12.420 grave. It's a rudimentary grave, basically a 00:22:12.420 --> 00:22:14.519 dirt mound on the side of the road. They are 00:22:14.519 --> 00:22:16.740 survivors again, just the two of them. They decorate 00:22:16.740 --> 00:22:19.279 it with flowers and they leave Gustavetti's chalkboard 00:22:19.279 --> 00:22:21.960 there. He doesn't need it anymore. No. And Gustavetti 00:22:21.960 --> 00:22:23.980 speaks the only words of the scene. He looks 00:22:23.980 --> 00:22:26.099 at Paulino and says, come on, Paulino. Come on, 00:22:26.099 --> 00:22:28.819 Paulino. Just that. And they return to the road. 00:22:28.839 --> 00:22:31.859 The song, I, Carmella. Yeah. In the background. 00:22:32.039 --> 00:22:34.480 They just keep moving. That is such a powerful 00:22:34.480 --> 00:22:36.819 ending. It's not a happy ending, obviously, but 00:22:36.819 --> 00:22:38.880 it's not a completely hopeless one either. They 00:22:38.880 --> 00:22:41.640 were still moving. It's life continuing amidst 00:22:41.640 --> 00:22:44.200 the tragedy. It deconstructs the idea of a happy 00:22:44.200 --> 00:22:46.680 ending. Survival isn't a happy ending. It's just 00:22:46.680 --> 00:22:50.319 the absence of death. But they go on. I want 00:22:50.319 --> 00:22:52.000 to zoom out a bit now. We've walked through the 00:22:52.000 --> 00:22:55.609 plot. And it is a gut punch. But let's talk about 00:22:55.609 --> 00:22:57.269 the production itself, because this wasn't an 00:22:57.269 --> 00:22:59.049 original screenplay, right? It started on the 00:22:59.049 --> 00:23:01.569 stage. That's right. It is based on a wildly 00:23:01.569 --> 00:23:05.210 successful play by José Sánchez Sinisterra. But 00:23:05.210 --> 00:23:07.250 the adaptation process was quite significant. 00:23:07.490 --> 00:23:10.329 If you see the play, you might be surprised at 00:23:10.329 --> 00:23:12.809 how different it is structurally. How so? In 00:23:12.809 --> 00:23:15.750 the play, there are only two characters, Carmela 00:23:15.750 --> 00:23:19.039 and Paulino. Gustavetti doesn't really exist 00:23:19.039 --> 00:23:21.019 as a character on stage, or at least not as a 00:23:21.019 --> 00:23:24.140 main one. And the story is told largely in flashback. 00:23:24.279 --> 00:23:27.079 Oh, really? Yes. In the play, Carmela is already 00:23:27.079 --> 00:23:30.079 dead when the curtain rises. She appears as a 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:32.619 ghost to converse with Paulino. So it's a ghost 00:23:32.619 --> 00:23:34.720 story on stage. That's a completely different 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:37.420 vibe. Effectively. Paulino is alone in a theater, 00:23:37.599 --> 00:23:40.819 depressed, drunk, and Carmela's ghost comes back 00:23:40.819 --> 00:23:43.400 to blame him for what happened. It's very claustrophobic. 00:23:43.619 --> 00:23:46.710 So Carlos Sora, the director... and his writer 00:23:46.710 --> 00:23:49.490 Rafael Escona, they really opened it up for the 00:23:49.490 --> 00:23:52.319 film. They made it linear. They decided to show 00:23:52.319 --> 00:23:54.900 us the journey rather than just tell us about 00:23:54.900 --> 00:23:57.380 it in retrospect. This allowed them to show the 00:23:57.380 --> 00:23:59.579 change in territory, the physical movement from 00:23:59.579 --> 00:24:01.920 the Republican zone to the nationalist zone. 00:24:02.079 --> 00:24:05.319 It turns the first half into a road movie. And 00:24:05.319 --> 00:24:07.660 it allowed them to flesh out the world. Exactly. 00:24:07.759 --> 00:24:10.099 It gave them the space to add characters like 00:24:10.099 --> 00:24:13.539 Gustavette. By giving Gustavette a physical presence, 00:24:13.660 --> 00:24:17.119 they added that layer of the witness. And the 00:24:17.119 --> 00:24:19.569 Italian lieutenant, Ripamonte, He gets to be 00:24:19.569 --> 00:24:22.329 a fully realized character in the film, representing 00:24:22.329 --> 00:24:25.289 that cultured fascism we talked about. It sounds 00:24:25.289 --> 00:24:27.170 like the film version is much more dynamic. It 00:24:27.170 --> 00:24:29.230 lets you experience the fall with them. It is. 00:24:29.650 --> 00:24:31.529 Soar said he wanted to show the relationship 00:24:31.529 --> 00:24:33.849 evolving in relation to the events. You can't 00:24:33.849 --> 00:24:35.690 really do that as effectively if one of them 00:24:35.690 --> 00:24:38.509 is already a ghost from minute one. He wanted 00:24:38.509 --> 00:24:40.609 the audience to fall in love with living, breathing 00:24:40.609 --> 00:24:43.529 Carmela before taking her away. Makes the loss 00:24:43.529 --> 00:24:46.089 that much more painful. Much more. Let's talk 00:24:46.089 --> 00:24:49.660 about the song itself. I, Carmela. Why that song? 00:24:49.859 --> 00:24:51.819 I've had it stuck in my head just reading the 00:24:51.819 --> 00:24:54.180 notes. It's an earworm, isn't it? But it's a 00:24:54.180 --> 00:24:57.099 song with deep, deep roots in Spanish history. 00:24:57.579 --> 00:25:00.079 It wasn't written for the Civil War. It was originally 00:25:00.079 --> 00:25:01.920 from the War of Independence against Napoleon 00:25:01.920 --> 00:25:05.559 in the early 1800s. Oh, wow. So it goes way back. 00:25:05.759 --> 00:25:08.680 It does. It's the eternal song of Spanish resistance 00:25:08.680 --> 00:25:11.490 against the invader. But during the Civil War, 00:25:11.609 --> 00:25:13.950 it was adapted. The lyrics were changed to reference 00:25:13.950 --> 00:25:16.970 the Battle of the Ebro, the bombardments. It 00:25:16.970 --> 00:25:19.289 became a favorite anthem of the Republican soldiers 00:25:19.289 --> 00:25:22.150 and the International Brigade. So it's a folk 00:25:22.150 --> 00:25:24.630 song that evolves. It gets new life with each 00:25:24.630 --> 00:25:27.309 conflict. Exactly. It's a living document. So 00:25:27.309 --> 00:25:29.490 when Carmela sings it at the end, she isn't just 00:25:29.490 --> 00:25:32.329 singing a pop song. She is invoking a century 00:25:32.329 --> 00:25:35.029 and a half of Spanish resistance. She is aligning 00:25:35.029 --> 00:25:37.250 herself with history. Now, earlier we mentioned 00:25:37.250 --> 00:25:39.349 that Sora is known for being a bit grim. His 00:25:39.349 --> 00:25:41.950 earlier films are heavy. But this movie is funny. 00:25:42.549 --> 00:25:45.710 Why the shift? Sora had made many films about 00:25:45.710 --> 00:25:48.190 the war or its aftermath, films like The Hunt 00:25:48.190 --> 00:25:50.349 or Crea Cuervos, and they were characterized 00:25:50.349 --> 00:25:53.589 by violence, brutality, and grim irony. They 00:25:53.589 --> 00:25:55.750 were made closer to the dictatorship. But with 00:25:55.750 --> 00:25:59.119 Ai... Carmela, which came out in 1990, he felt 00:25:59.119 --> 00:26:01.299 enough time had passed. It was 50 years after 00:26:01.299 --> 00:26:03.740 the war ended. Right. And Spain had been a democracy 00:26:03.740 --> 00:26:06.880 for over a decade. He felt he could adopt a broader 00:26:06.880 --> 00:26:09.720 perspective. He believed that by employing humor, 00:26:09.900 --> 00:26:11.740 he could say things that would be impossible 00:26:11.740 --> 00:26:15.059 to say otherwise. Humor as a Trojan horse. In 00:26:15.059 --> 00:26:18.240 a way. It humanizes the tragedy. If you laugh 00:26:18.240 --> 00:26:20.619 with these characters, if you see them fart and 00:26:20.619 --> 00:26:22.839 struggle and eat cat, you love them. They aren't 00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:25.220 symbols. They are people. So when the violence 00:26:25.220 --> 00:26:27.680 comes, it hurts more. It's not just a statistic. 00:26:27.819 --> 00:26:31.039 It's a friend dying. And clearly that approach 00:26:31.039 --> 00:26:32.839 worked. We mentioned the Goyas at the top of 00:26:32.839 --> 00:26:35.559 the show. It dominated. It swept the major categories. 00:26:35.599 --> 00:26:38.660 Best film, best director, best actor, best actress. 00:26:38.779 --> 00:26:41.380 It was Spain's submission for the Oscars, although 00:26:41.380 --> 00:26:43.859 it didn't get the nomination. But it won significant 00:26:43.859 --> 00:26:47.539 European accolades. It really, really resonated 00:26:47.539 --> 00:26:49.660 with the Spanish public. Why do you think it 00:26:49.660 --> 00:26:52.619 hit such a nerve in 1990 specifically? I think 00:26:52.619 --> 00:26:55.599 it was the first time a major film allowed Spaniards 00:26:55.599 --> 00:26:58.460 to look at the war and not just feel anger, but 00:26:58.460 --> 00:27:01.160 feel pity. Pity for the people who were caught 00:27:01.160 --> 00:27:03.849 in the middle. Paulino represents the silent 00:27:03.849 --> 00:27:05.990 majority of Spain people who just kept their 00:27:05.990 --> 00:27:08.849 heads down to survive Francoism. It forgives 00:27:08.849 --> 00:27:11.210 them in a way. It doesn't forgive them, but it 00:27:11.210 --> 00:27:13.289 understands them. It says, we know why you did 00:27:13.289 --> 00:27:15.970 it. You were scared. You wanted to live. But 00:27:15.970 --> 00:27:18.430 it also honors the Carmelas, the ones who couldn't 00:27:18.430 --> 00:27:20.329 do it. It bridges the gap between the survivors 00:27:20.329 --> 00:27:23.069 and the martyrs. There is also a bit of a backstage 00:27:23.069 --> 00:27:25.309 reunion story here, isn't there, between the 00:27:25.309 --> 00:27:27.670 director and the writer? There is. Carlos Sara 00:27:27.670 --> 00:27:30.490 and the screenwriter Rafael Ascona. They were 00:27:30.490 --> 00:27:33.140 a legendary duo. in Spanish cinema in the 60s 00:27:33.140 --> 00:27:35.599 and 70s. They were like the Lennon and McCartney 00:27:35.599 --> 00:27:38.559 of Spanish arthouse. But they had a massive falling 00:27:38.559 --> 00:27:41.700 out in 1975. Right before Korea Cuervos, I think. 00:27:41.779 --> 00:27:44.259 Yes. They stopped speaking for 15 years. So this 00:27:44.259 --> 00:27:46.940 film marked their reunion. And what a reunion 00:27:46.940 --> 00:27:49.880 it was. It was a significant moment in Spanish 00:27:49.880 --> 00:27:52.259 cinema history to see these two masters working 00:27:52.259 --> 00:27:55.200 together again to tell one last great story about 00:27:55.200 --> 00:27:57.920 the war. It feels like a mature film. Like a 00:27:57.920 --> 00:27:59.980 young director makes a movie about the war that 00:27:59.980 --> 00:28:03.240 is... all guns and glory. This feels like an 00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:06.079 old man's movie in the best possible way. It's 00:28:06.079 --> 00:28:08.759 about regret and memory. It is. It's wise. It 00:28:08.759 --> 00:28:11.440 knows that heroism is rare and survival is ugly. 00:28:11.759 --> 00:28:14.460 So what does this all mean? We have a comedy 00:28:14.460 --> 00:28:17.579 about a tragedy. We have a mute who finds his 00:28:17.579 --> 00:28:19.440 voice only when there is no one left to hear 00:28:19.440 --> 00:28:22.319 it. We have a survivor and a martyr. I think 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:24.980 I, Carmela, is ultimately a film about the price 00:28:24.980 --> 00:28:27.480 of survival. Paulino survives. He walks away. 00:28:27.720 --> 00:28:30.279 But at what cost? He had to compromise everything 00:28:30.279 --> 00:28:33.079 he was. Carmela refused to pay that price, and 00:28:33.079 --> 00:28:35.259 she paid with her life. It doesn't really judge 00:28:35.259 --> 00:28:37.700 Polino, though, does it? The film is surprisingly 00:28:37.700 --> 00:28:39.960 sympathetic to him. No, and that's the brilliance 00:28:39.960 --> 00:28:41.619 of it. It doesn't paint him as a villain. He's 00:28:41.619 --> 00:28:43.680 just human. Most of us, if we're honest with 00:28:43.680 --> 00:28:45.299 ourselves, are probably more like Polino than 00:28:45.299 --> 00:28:48.279 Carmela. We want to live. We would probably read 00:28:48.279 --> 00:28:50.380 the poem if it meant not getting shot. But we 00:28:50.380 --> 00:28:53.440 aspire to have Carmela's courage. Exactly. The 00:28:53.440 --> 00:28:56.140 film asks us, at what point does the show become 00:28:56.140 --> 00:28:59.299 impossible to perform? At what point do you have 00:28:59.299 --> 00:29:01.579 to drop the flag or rather raise the flag and 00:29:01.579 --> 00:29:04.500 say no more? It's a haunting question. And that 00:29:04.500 --> 00:29:07.579 final image of Gustavette and Polino walking 00:29:07.579 --> 00:29:11.119 away back onto the road. It just sticks with 00:29:11.119 --> 00:29:13.319 you. It suggests that the only true resistance 00:29:13.319 --> 00:29:16.180 in a war where ideology kills is the enduring 00:29:16.180 --> 00:29:19.559 bond of human relationships. Or perhaps, and 00:29:19.559 --> 00:29:21.400 this is another way to look at it, the recovery 00:29:21.400 --> 00:29:23.859 of Gustavette's voice is a sign. A sign of what? 00:29:23.960 --> 00:29:26.470 That the witness can finally speak. that the 00:29:26.470 --> 00:29:29.230 story of the tragedy must now be told. Carmela 00:29:29.230 --> 00:29:31.730 is gone, but Gustavete has a voice now. He saw 00:29:31.730 --> 00:29:34.369 it all. He can tell her story. The story must 00:29:34.369 --> 00:29:36.930 go on. That is a beautiful way to look at it. 00:29:36.990 --> 00:29:39.750 The silence is broken, even if the heart is broken. 00:29:39.930 --> 00:29:42.490 Well said. Well, that is all the time we have 00:29:42.490 --> 00:29:45.130 for this deep dive into Carmela. If you haven't 00:29:45.130 --> 00:29:47.190 seen it, it is definitely worth tracking down. 00:29:47.289 --> 00:29:49.390 It's a roller coaster of emotions. It'll make 00:29:49.390 --> 00:29:51.150 you laugh. It'll make you sick. And it will break 00:29:51.150 --> 00:29:53.950 your heart. Absolutely. A true masterpiece of 00:29:53.950 --> 00:29:55.789 Spanish cinema. Thanks for listening, everyone. 00:29:55.990 --> 00:29:57.789 We'll catch you on the next dive. Goodbye.