Viridiana (1961)

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Director:

Luis Buñuel

Writers:

Julio Alejandro (writer)
Luis Buñuel (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

19 March 1962 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Viridiana, a young nun about to take her final vows, pays a visit to her widowed uncle at the request of her Mother Superior. |

Plot Keywords:

Nun | Vow | Mother Superior | Scratching | Destruction

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Silvia Pinal	...	Viridiana
Francisco Rabal	...	Jorge
Fernando Rey	...	Don Jaime
José Calvo	...	Beggar (as Jose Calvo)
Margarita Lozano	...	Ramona
José Manuel Martín	...	Beggar
Victoria Zinny	...	Lucia
Luis Heredia	...	Beggar
Joaquín Roa	...	Beggar
Lola Gaos	...	Beggar
María Isbert	...	Beggar (as Maruja Isbert)
Teresa Rabal	...	Rita (as Teresita Rabal)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Alicia Jorge Barriga	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Claudio Brook	...	(uncredited)
Juan García Tiendra	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Palmira Guerra	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Joaquin Mayol	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Sergio Mendizábal	...	Beggar (uncredited)
Narciso Ojeda	...	(uncredited)
Milagros Tomás	...	Beggar (uncredited)

Directed by
Luis Buñuel

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Julio Alejandro		writer (as Julio Alejandro de Castro)
Luis Buñuel		screenplay
Luis Buñuel		story
Benito Pérez Galdós		novel "Halma" (uncredited)

Produced by
Gustavo Alatriste	....	producer
Ricardo Muñoz Suay	....	executive producer
Pere Portabella	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Gustavo Pittaluga

Cinematography by
José F. Aguayo		(as Jose F. Aguayo)

Film Editing by
Pedro del Rey

Production Design by
Francisco Canet

Production Management
Gustavo Quintana	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Juan Luis Buñuel	....	assistant director (as J.L. Buñuel)
José Puyol	....	assistant director (as J. Puyol)

Sound Department
Aurelio García Tijeras	....	sound engineer (as A. Tijeras García)

Production Companies

• Films 59
• Gustavo Alatriste
• Unión Industrial Cinematográfica (UNINCI)

Distributors

• Criterion Collection, The (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Dynit (2009) (Italy) (DVD)
• José Esteban Alenda Distribución (Spain)
• Kingsley-International Pictures (1962) (USA) (subtitled)
• Madman Entertainment (2006) (Australia) (DVD)
• Madman Entertainment (2006) (New Zealand) (DVD)
• Wilder (Brazil) (VHS)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Mexico | Spain

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | France:Unrated | Argentina:16 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Madrid, Spain

Company:

Films 59

Trivia:

Initially banned in Spain and completely denounced by the Vatican.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007)

A hymn to human nature

This is a great movie. It is an investigation of the human nature and attempts to tell an interesting story about the suppression of our inner instincts. Bunuel, once again, compares the morality that comes from inside us, i.e., the morality of the subconscious, against the morality which imposed by society and the various religious organizations.

Bunuel seems sacrilegious, but I think that his movie attacks false piety as opposed to the deeper mysteries of the Catholic faith. Viridiana in the movie is not considerate of her uncle's passion for her and that kills the old man. Her punishment comes later from the unworthy beggars. The moral of the story is that we'd better investigate our flaws and strengths before attempting any encounter with other members of the society. Nobody is perfect and there are different ways to help people out there effectively. Honest work is sometimes more effective than useless acts of charity. If we do not know our selves and we cannot understand others we may deeply hurt people we care for.

All these ideas came to my mind while watching "Viridiana". What a great movie it is. One of the great moments of the movie is a side by side viewing of the honest workers renovating the mansion and the unworthy beggars praying in the fields.