El ángel exterminador (1962)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Luis Buñuel

Writer:

Luis Buñuel (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 August 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Mystery

Plot:

The guests at an upper-class dinner party find themselves unable to leave.

Plot Keywords:

Guest | Party | Room | Upper Class | Unknown Power

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Silvia Pinal	...	Leticia 'La Valkiria'
Enrique Rambal	...	Edmundo Nobile
Claudio Brook	...	Julio, Mayordomo; Steward
José Baviera	...	Leandro Gomez
Augusto Benedico	...	Carlos Conde; Doctor
Antonio Bravo	...	Sergio Russell
Jacqueline Andere	...	Alicia de Roc
César del Campo	...	Alvaro, Coronel; Colonel
Rosa Elena Durgel	...	Silvia
Lucy Gallardo	...	Lucía de Nobile
Enrique García Álvarez	...	Alberto Roc
Ofelia Guilmáin	...	Juana Avila
Nadia Haro Oliva	...	Ana Maynar
Tito Junco	...	Raúl
Xavier Loyá	...	Francisco Avila

Also Known As:

The Exterminating Angel (USA)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | UK:12 | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Producciones Gustavo Alatriste

Trivia:

Was banned in Russia because the idea of people not being allowed to "leave a party" was considered offensive and anti-government.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: After the butler trips in the dining room, the lady of the house follows him into the kitchen. While they speak the boom mic can clearly be seen at the bottom of the screen, extending out from under a table.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Tierra (1996)

The best introduction to the anarchic, surrealistic, bourgeois-baiting world of Luis Bunuel.

If you want an introduction into the anarchic, surrealistic, bourgeois-baiting world of Luis Bunuel 'The Exterminating Angel' is the best place to start. The initial premise is simple, albeit puzzling - the guests at a dinner party mysteriously find themselves unable to leave their hosts house at the end of the evening. There's no logical reason why, they just can't. They are confused at first, but as the days go by and the food starts to run out, they become increasingly more desperate and turn on each other. Bunuel makes the most of the idea and creates a complex, multi-layered movie, packed with fascinating small details, intriguing dialogue and surprising situations, most of which is left up to the viewer to "explain". Bunuel is one of those directors, like David Lynch, Russ Meyer or Coffin Joe, that viewers either "get" or they don't. His vision is original and uncompromised and not for everyone. Me, I think he made some of the greatest movies of all time, especially his fertile 1960s period which included some of his very best work like 'Belle De Jour' and yes, 'The Exterminating Angel'.