Cría Cuervos (1976)

In the twilight of Francisco Franco's dictatorship, an eight-year-old orphan and her two sisters find shelter in the house of their stern aunt, trying their best to acclimatise to a new reality. Will they summon up the courage to grow up?

Director:

Carlos Saura

Writer:

Carlos Saura (screenplay)

Stars:

Ana Torrent, Conchita Pérez, Mayte Sanchez

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 8 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ana Torrent	...	Ana niña
Conchita Pérez	...	Irene (as Conchi Perez)
Mayte Sanchez	...	Maite (as Maite Sánchez)
Geraldine Chaplin	...	María / Ana
Mónica Randall	...	Paulina (as Monica Randall)
Florinda Chico	...	Rosa
Josefina Díaz	...	Abuela (as Josefina Diaz)
Germán Cobos	...	Nicolás Garontes (as German Cobos)
Héctor Alterio	...	Anselmo (as Hector Alterio)
Mirta Miller	...	Amelia Garontes
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Julieta Serrano	...	Ana (voice)

Storyline

In Madrid, the orphan sisters Irene, Ana and Maite are raised by their austere aunt Paulina together with their mute and crippled grandmother after the death of their mother and their military father Anselmo. Ana is a melancholic girl, fascinated by death, after seeing her mother having a painful death and her father dead in bed.

---

Plot Keywords:

flashback | francoist spain | poison | childhood fantasy | childhood trauma | 

---

Taglines:

Raise Ravens and they'll Peck out Your Eyes.

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

18 May 1977 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cría Cuervos

Filming Locations:

15 Calle de María de Molina, Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$13,029

Company Credits

Production Co:

Elías Querejeta Producciones Cinematográficas S.L.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film is part of the Criterion Collection, spine #403.

---

Quotes

Rosa: Your poor mother wanted to breastfeed you, but she was too pale and delicate. So I was the one who really nursed you.
Ana: Did you breastfeed me?
Rosa: Heavens, no. I gave you a bottle.
Ana: You've got big breasts. Will you show me?
Rosa: What do you think this is, a circus?
Ana: Come on, show me! I'll close my eyes and count to five... Oh! They're so big!

---

Connections

Referenced in Le grand concours des animateurs: Episode dated 7 September 2019 (2019)

---

Soundtracks

¡Ay, Maricruz!
Written by Joaquín Valverde (as Valverde), Rafael de León (as León) and Manuel L. Quiroga (as Quiroga)
Performed by Imperio Argentina

User Reviews

Morbid Recollections of a Dark Childhood

In Madrid, the orphan sisters Irene (Conchota Pérez), Ana (Ana Torrent) and Maite (Maite Sánchez) are raised by their austere aunt Paulina (Mônica Randall) together with their mute and crippled grandmother after the death of their mother (Geraldine Chaplin) and their military father Anselmo (Héctor Alterio). Ana is a melancholic girl, fascinated by death, after seeing her mother having a painful death and her father dead in bed.

"Cria Cuervos" is a beautiful and sad movie of Carlos Saura that can be watched in two levels: in the first plane, it is a film that recalls the style of the family dramas of Ingmar Bergman. However, in a deeper level, the story is actually a metaphor of the recent Spanish political history, and each character represents a segment of their society: Ana's father represents the military dictatorship of Franco; her dying mother, the republic; her grandmother, those who miss the republic; Ana is probably the youth with a sad childhood surrounded by deaths. The conclusion is a message of hope for the people. I believe that those familiarized with the Spanish history would find many other elements, but in both levels this movie is wonderful. The title is a reference to the Spanish proverb "Cría cuervos y te sacaran los ojos" which means "Raise the ravens, and they will remove your eyes". Ana Torrent shows her amazing talent in the beginning of her successful career. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Cría Cuervos…" ("Raise Ravens…")