Abismos de pasión (1954)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Luis Buñuel

Writers:

Emily Brontë (novel)
Luis Buñuel (story)

Release Date:

30 June 1954 (Mexico)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Gone several years, the brooding Alejandro returns to the hacienda of his foster sister, Catalina, whom he loves...

Plot Keywords:

Foreign Language Adaptation | Beautiful Woman | Based On Novel

Cast

Irasema Dilián	...	Catalina (as Irasema Dilian)
Jorge Mistral	...	Alejandro
Lilia Prado	...	Isabel
Ernesto Alonso	...	Eduardo
Francisco Reiguera	...	José
Hortensia Santoveña	...	María
Jaime González Quiñones	...	Jorge (as Jaime González)
Luis Aceves Castañeda	...	Ricardo

Also Known As:

Cumbres borrascosas (Mexico)
Wuthering Heights

Runtime:

USA:91 min | Spain:90 min | Argentina:90 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA High Fidelity)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

Hacienda de San Francisco Cuadra, Taxco, Guerrero, Mexico

Company:

Producciones Tepeyac

Trivia:

Producer Óscar Dancigers would only allow Luis Buñuel to make the film if he used a stock cast Óscar Dancigers had prepared for a musical comedy. Ultimately, Luis Buñuel was very displeased with their acting.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Buñuel y la mesa del rey Salomón (2001)

Brontë and Bunuel--not to be missed

Abismos de pasión (1954) is Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights, directed and co-scripted by Luis Buñuel.

This film was produced in Mexico, where Buñuel lived for 20 years as an exile from Franco's Spain. Believe it or not, the film works. Colonial Mexico in 1800 probably had many similarities to the rigid, socially conscious society of England at the same period. Buñuel's film is set in rural Mexico, in an region as isolated as the English moors.

Jorge Mistral plays Alejandro (Heathcliff), Irasema Dilián plays Catalina (Catherine), and Ernesto Alonso is Eduardo (Edgar). These actors were apparently popular Mexican stars of the time, and they play their roles with a ferocious intensity that fits Brontë's writing style.

The whole effort has an over-the-top quality to it, but, when you think about it, so does Wuthering Heights. Abismos de pasión isn't a film for everyone, but it's a must for Buñuel buffs.