El ciclo Dreyer (2006) Poster

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6/10
Enjoyable though uneven movie about some Universitary youngsters and their lovely adventures during the sixties
ma-cortes10 April 2019
Madrid, 1961. Carlos (Pablo Rivero) , a Law student , manages a cine-club and programs a cycle of the classic "Carl Dreyer" , including classic movies as Vampyr , La passion de Jeanne d'Arc, Dies irae , Ordet , Gertud . Santi (Fernando Andina) is a priest and friend of the family, then visits Carlos' sweetheart , Elena (Elena Ballesteros) , begore going to African missions. Elena is living alone in her spacious house and she was asked by her family to allow Santi to stay at home while he is undergoing medical tests . This will change the live of the couple formed by Carlos and Elena , also affecting Julia (Ruth Díaz) , the club's projectionist who is also secretly in love with Carlos. Meanwhile , Carlos has organized a retrospective of Danish cinema master Carl Theodor Dreyer, an important project in which he will spend time and worry . The cinema series is to be presented in a venue attached to a religious boarding school run by nuns. Things go wrong when the priest suddenly suffers headache , infectious trouble , and other sickness .

This is an agreeable as well as uneven romance story in less than 100 minutes of length and yet with an air of naturalness and credibility rarely match . This is a lightful look at the Madrid of the 1960s that takes our protagonists into twisted situations , as they become involved into triangular dramas , though some scenes do not make much sense . As main actors fall in love among them , as Santi , Elena Julia and Carlos discover their mutual liking and attraction ; to complicate things the priest , who is undergoing medical tests ,suffers from infection trouble . The film moves in fits and starts most of which would be desirable , with more traps the viewer resists any kind, and some moments of enjoyment and others quite a few embarrassing . It tends to glamorize the 60s , as here the sixties seems to be a period more free than it really happened ; in fact , it was a conservative and repressed society . The flick gives a short description about lives of young people under the focus on three students and a priest . There are brief moments of drama , but predominates light situations , including some love scenes ; above all, the biggest problem with the film is an aimless wandering in its central part that makes the viewer to wander and for a few moments longer interested in a story that does not seem to know where to go until the ending . The best scenes deal with the debate , discussion and analysis of the spectators about Dreyer's films : Vampyr , Jeanne d'Arc, Dies irae , Ordet , Gertud , giving a different viewpoint in direct opposition of the more intellectual critical provided by expert reviewer Carlos .The main cast is pretty well , as Pablo Rivero, being very known thanks to ¨Cuentame¨series , he plays as a young whose passion for films consume his life , he is finely accompanied by Elena Ballesteros as his charming girlfriend and Fernando Andina as the unsettling priest ; besides , an adequate support cast who is frankly good , such as : Ruth Díaz and Isabel Ampudia .

It packs a colorful and glowing cinematography by Alfonso Sanz that heightens the ambiance, being mostly shot in interior scenarios . Along with an evocative and atmospheric score . This decent motion picture was professionally directed by Alvaro Del Amo and it was Nominee Valladolid International Film Golden Spike . Alvaro is a good writer and filmmaker . Being particulaly known for his scripts :La mirada del otro , Camarón , Celos , La buena estrella , Intruso , and La huella del crimen series , directing some shorts and documentary as Visconti: La verdad del melodrama and Pasolini, el poeta en la playa . Rating : 6/10 . Acceptable and passable . The picturewill appeal to Spanish cinema buffs .
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4/10
Carl Dreyer at the cine club
jotix10020 November 2010
Warning: Spoilers
A look at the Madrid of the 1960s takes us to meet a young man, Carlos, who has organized a retrospective of Danish cinema master Carl Dreyer, an ambitious project to undertake. The series is to be presented in a venue attached to a religious boarding school run by nuns. The premise just does not make much sense because of the times the country was living, let alone that films in the cycle could be shown in that setting.

Carlos is in love with Elena, but his passion for films consume him. The projectionist, Julia, is secretly in love with Carlos. To complicate things, Elena, who is living alone in her family spacious home, is asked to allow Santi, a priest that is going as a missionary to Africa, stay with her because of the medical tests he is undergoing. Santi, who is taken by Elena to watch the films, has a viewpoint in direct opposition of the more intellectual types that flock to the Dreyer's films.

It comes as no surprise when Santi and Elena discover their mutual liking, something that he fights, but cannot control his desires for the beautiful young girl. Julia also lets Carlos knows the way she feels about him. The four principals will be changed forever because they have found passion in the least expected places.

"El ciclo Dreyer", directed by Alvaro Del Amo is an ambitious film that does not go anywhere because most of the ideas expressed in it, are paper thin. The failure in the movie lies with Mr. Del Amo himself. He has made a pretentious film with the high concept of bringing a master like Dreyer into the mix to give his arty followers a glimpse about how much he knows about films.

The director's staging is rigid without any humor in all what we are watching. Beautiful Elena Ballesteros, and the rest of the cast, go through the motions, but it is clear they were acting in a different film.
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