The Holy Innocents (1984)

Spain, 1960s. People from a very poor family work in the country, at the service of a rich family of landowners...

Director:

Mario Camus

Writers:

Miguel Delibes (novel), Antonio Larreta (adaptation)

Stars:

Alfredo Landa, Terele Pávez, Belén Ballesteros

6 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alfredo Landa	...	Paco, El Bajo
Terele Pávez	...	Régula
Belén Ballesteros	...	Nieves
Juan Sachez	...	Quirce
Susana Sánchez	...	La Niña Chica
Francisco Rabal	...	Azarías
Ágata Lys	...	Doña Pura
Agustín González	...	Don Pedro
Juan Diego	...	Señorito Iván
Mary Carrillo	...	Señora Marquesa
José Guardiola	...	Señorito de la Jara
Manuel Zarzo	...	Don Manuel, el doctor
Francisco Torres	...	Facundo
Pepín Salvador	...	Obispo (as José Salvador)
José Manuel Sito	...	Señorito Lucas

Storyline

Somewhere in the spanish country, in the 60s. Paco and his wife Régula are very poor. They work as tenant farmers for a very wealthy landowner. They have 3 children. One is backward. The others can not got to school because the master "needs" their work. When Regula's brother is fired from where he has worked for 61 years, he settles down at their little place... An attack against the archaism of the spanish country of the 60s.

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Plot Keywords:

country mansion | hunting | murder | milano | servants | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on same title Miguel Delibes's novel.

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Quotes

Azarías: [subtitled version]
[he runs to the house of the young master and knocks at the window; the people inside look at him; then he goes to the door]
Azarías: The kite is ill, young master.
Señorito de la Jara: It's old, Azarías. We must find a new chicken.
Azarías: But it's our kite, young master.
Señorito de la Jara: All birds are alike!
Azarías: Young master, can I get the magician from the town?
Señorito de la Jara: The magician? Azarías, you have expensive needs... if we have to find a magician, just for a bird.
[he closes the door in his face]
Azarías: [...]

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Connections

Spoofed in No lo llames amor... llámalo X (2011)

User Reviews

A timeless look at a thankfully bygone period

In the opening scenes of this movie, I couldn't tell what century it was. The peasant family living in their hovel with no electricity or running water and their subservient attitude toward the master made me wonder if this movie was taking place in the 19th century. But no, a car appeared, a model from the 1960s, so I knew that it took place in relatively recent times.

Filmed in muted, grayish tones reminiscent of a Goya painting, this film gives one an idea of what life must have been like, not only for Spanish peasants in the Franco era but also for medieval serfs and slaves in the pre-Civil War South. The master and mistress treat their own whims as more important than the peasants' needs, require them to act and speak in a subservient manner, act as if small favors are huge concessions (The family gets to move into a house with electricity!), and literally treat the men of the family as if they were hunting dogs, forcing them to fetch the game that the master spends an inordinate amount of time shooting. In one case, a man is forced to fetch while trying to recover from a broken leg. When foreign visitors criticize the master and mistress for their treatment of the peasants, they make a big show of demonstrating that the peasants are happy and can write their own names (but only because they have just been taught).

But the world is changing, and even the meekest peasant may reach his limit...

Unfortunately, this film has never been released on DVD for Region 1, and the Region 2 version is out of print, so few people will be able to see this brutal but fascinating glimpse of the twilight of an era when Spanish society was composed of countless little dictatorships.

Details

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

4 April 1984 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Aprószentek

Filming Locations:

Alburquerque, Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ganesh Producciones Cinematográficas, Televisión Española (TVE)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Black and White Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1