Reviewing Devil's Backbone

From the UK Observer:

The Devil's Backbone
Philip French
Sunday December 2, 2001The Observer

For 30 years now, Spain has been making movies in which the Spanish Civil War is observed from its fringe through the puzzled eyes of sensitive children. The finest of them is Victor Erice's Spirit of the Beehive, shot two years before Franco's death, and The Devil's Backbone, written and directed by the Mexican Guillermo del Toro and produced by Pedro Almodóvar, is a worthy addition. Like del Toro's earlier pictures, Cronos and Mimic, it's a ghost story not entirely unlike the recent Spanish success The Others.

The film takes place at an isolated orphanage on a hot, dry plain in 1938 when the Fascists are clearly in the ascendancy. The orphanage is run by a kindly couple, the crippled Carmen (Almodóvar's marvellous leading lady Marisa Paredes) and the elderly Dr Casares (Federico Luppi). They're covert loyalist supporters, and their latest charge is Carlos (Fernando Tielve), whose father was recently killed in battle.

From the start there's an uneasy, eerie atmosphere. Carlos is bullied by his fellow orphans; he tries to make sense of overheard conversations; a giant unexploded bomb in the courtyard is mysteriously connected with the disappearance of one of the boys and the rumours of a threatening spirit, 'the one who sighs'.

Carlos keeps catching glimpses of a ghostly figure that issues warnings of forthcoming catastrophe, and after a group of International Brigade prisoners are brought to the house and summarily executed, it becomes clear that Carmen and Dr Casares must flee for their lives. At this point a quiet, suggestive picture suddenly turns into shockingly violent melodrama with the vindictive ex-inmate Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega) as the catalyst. There are even echoes of Lord of the Flies in the brutal climax. It's a striking film and further good news for the Spanish cinema, too few of whose films open here.



Some of the other reviewers commented that they felt the ending did not live up to a promising beginning. In many ways, I see their point. Not only did the fear factor of the story fall apart after Carlos confronts Santi, but the final death scene in which the chidren over run the tyrant lacked a little umpfh. At the same time, one might see the dissipation of fear in both viewer and character as the maturation of the boys as they come into a new age of their lives and of Spain. In this vein, the viewer becomes less of an observer of Carlos and more of a participant in his journey at the orphanage. Thoughts?

The Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War started after an attempted coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of the Second Spanish Republic. The Civil War devastated Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939, ending with the victory of the rebels, the founding of a dictatorship led by the Fascist General Francisco Franco, and the defeat of the supporters of the Republic. Republicans (republicanos), gained the support of the Soviet Union and Mexico, while the followers of the rebellion, nacionales (Nationalists), received the support of the major European Axis powers, namely Italy, Germany, as well as neighbouring Portugal.

The war increased tensions in the lead-up to World War II and was largely seen as a possible war by proxy between the Communist Soviet Union and the Fascist Axis of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. In particular, tanks and bombing of cities from the air were features of the later war in Europe. The advent of the mass media allowed an unprecedented level of attention (Ernest Hemingway, Martha Gellhorn, George Orwell and Robert Capa all covered it) and so the war became notable for the passion and political division it inspired, and for atrocities committed on both sides of the conflict. Like other Civil Wars, the Spanish Civil War often pitted family members and trusted neighbours and friends against each other. Apart from the combatants, many civilians were killed for their political or religious views by both sides, and after the war ended in 1939, Republicans were at times persecuted by the victorious Nationalists.



For more information, please visit: http://http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Civil_War

Devil's Backbone

Hello all-

The next meeting will be on October 27th (pending approval from all members) at Holyoke Manor. Dinner will start at 7.30 with the viewing beginning at 8 PM on the Jumbo-tron. In honor of Halloween, Christine has selected:



The Devil's Backbone was directed by award-winning Guilermo Del Toro of Hellboy and Pan's Labrynth fame. Below is a plot summary:

It is 1939, the end of three years of bloody civil war in Spain, and General Franco's right-wing Nationalists are poised to defeat the left-wing Republican forces. A ten-year-old boy named Carlos (Fernando Tielve), the son of a fallen Republican war hero, is left by his tutor in an orphanage in the middle of nowhere. The orphanage is run by a curt but considerate headmistress named Carmen (Marisa Paredes) and a kindly Professor Casares, both of whom are sympathetic to the doomed Republican cause. Despite their concern for him, and his gradual triumph over the usual schoolhouse bully, Carlos never feels completely comfortable in his new environment. First of all, there was that initial encounter with the orphanage's nasty caretaker, Jacinto, who reacts even more violently when anyone is caught looking around a particular storage room the one with the deep well. Second, and more inexplicable, is the presence of a ghost, one of the former occupants of the orphanage named Santi. Not long after Carlos' arrival, Santi latches onto Carlos, badgering him incessantly at night and gloomily intoning, "Many of you will die." As if that wasn't enough to keep the orphanage's occupants in an unrelenting state of terror, there's the un-exploded bomb that dominates the orphanage's courtyard, still ticking away; With the orphanage left defenseless by its isolation, and the swift progression of Franco's troops, the ghost's prediction seems depressingly accurate. Nevertheless, with every step of the plot, it becomes apparent that the ghost's predictions as to who (or what) will die, the real source of danger and even the definition of death itself may be more ambiguous than first thought. (ImDB)

I have personally seen this movie and thought it well made and perfect for late October. While the movie is filmed and based in Spain, its famed director is Mexican. As a result, food should be Mexican themed (since we already had a Spanish night).

Please check back for more updates as we get closer to the date.

Zach