Mad Love (2001)

The love story that transformed Juana, Queen of Spain, into Juana "the Mad". A story of passions, lies and jealousy with a political motive behind.

Director:

Vicente Aranda

Writers:

Vicente Aranda (screenplay), Antonio Larreta (screenplay)

Stars:

Pilar López de Ayala, Daniele Liotti, Rosana Pastor

14 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pilar López de Ayala	...	Juana
Daniele Liotti	...	Felipe
Rosana Pastor	...	Elvira
Giuliano Gemma	...	De Veyre
Roberto Álvarez	...	Admiral
Eloy Azorín	...	Álvaro de Estúñiga
Guillermo Toledo	...	Capitán Corrales
Susi Sánchez	...	Reina Isabel (as Susy Sánchez)
Chema de Miguel	...	Don Juan Manuel
Andrés Lima	...	Marqués de Villena
Cipriano Lodosa	...	Marliano
Manuela Arcuri	...	Aixa-Beatriz
Carolina Bona	...	Inés
Jorge Monje	...	Hernán
Sol Abad	...	Mucama

Storyline

Juana is married off by her pious parents, the Catholic kings Ferndinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castille, to ally Spain, united by their marriage, to the Burgundian and other Habsburg heritage of archduke Maximilian's son Philip. When they meet, it's love at first sight, for her all-consuming, for him one of many happy bed partnerships as she later discovers. Deaths in her family soon make Juana Isabella's heir, but Ferdinand suggests she inherited her grandmother's madness and supports Philip's ambition to rule instead, which becomes the stakes of political maneuvering in the Cortes (nobility-dominated parliament). Combined with Philip's incurable infidelity, which includes a Moorish whore-princess, multiple drama is inevitable, and worse follows.

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Plot Keywords:

female nudity | male rear nudity | male nudity | king | spain | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality/nudity

Details

Official Sites:

juanalaloca.com (Spanish) Sony Pictures Classics

Country:

Spain Italy Portugal France

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

30 August 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mad Love

Filming Locations:

Barajas, Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

€4,800,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

€425,402 (Spain), 2 October 2001, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$31,417, 1 September 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$279,605, 15 December 2002

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$9,200,000, 31 December 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+ España, Enrique Cerezo Producciones Cinematográficas S.A., Eurimages

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Remake of Locura de amor (1948)

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Soundtracks

Danza
Anonymos author

User Reviews

Historical and solid film dealing with jealousy , passions , treason and political intrigues

This is the historic tale with a politic fight behind , concerning a deep love story who transformed Juana, Queen of Spain, into Juana "The mad" in which Pilar Lopez De Ayala did a powerful interpretation of the nutty queen . Juana is married off by her pious parents , the two famous Catholic kings : intelligent Fernando of Aragon (Héctor Colome) and sensible Isabella of Castille (Susi Sanchez) , to ally Spain , united by their marriage, to the Burgundian and other Habsburg heritage of archduke Maximilian and Maria's son Philip (Daniel Liotti) . As in 1496, Juana De Castilla, daughter of the Catholic Kings, travels to Flandes to marry the Archduke Felipe De Austria, known as 'El Hermoso' or The Handsome . When they meet, it's love at first sight, for her all-consuming, for him one of many happy bed partnerships as she later figures out . Deaths in her family soon make Juana Isabella's heir , but Ferdinand suggests she inherited her grandmother's craziness and supports Philip's ambition to govern instead , which becomes the stakes of political maneuvering in the Cortes and then multiple drama is inevitable . Combined with Philip's relentless infidelity , which includes a Moorish whore-princess (Manuela Arcuri) , and other lovers as the things go awry when Juana uncovers his treason . As mental health Juana starts getting worse and Felipe makes the Burgos Court , nobility-dominated parliament , declare the incurable insanity of Juana and confines her in the monastery of Las Huelgas, proclaiming himself as the king . Finally , Juana is locked at a convent in the city of Tordesillas , Valladolid .

Juana "The mad"concerns a peculiar story of love , lies and jealousy with a political confrontation behind . This interesting as well as intimate story is a passionate retelling and a touching drama , including strong sex scenes . Vicente Aranda also writes the script along with Antonio Larreta based on a story by Manuel Tamayo and being filmed in his usual formal and stylistic scholarship , without leaving a trace the thought-provoking issues , in terms of dramatic and narrative excitement . Extraordinary acting by main star , Pilar Lopez De Ayala , she steals the show at a portentous acting who won several awards . The secondary actors were very intelligent chosen and they all did a marvelous performance . As support cast is frankly magnificent such as Rosana Pastor , Giuliano Gemma , Roberto Álvarez , Eloy Azorín , Guillermo Toledo , Susi Sánchez , Héctor Colome and many others . Original and evocative Music by José Nieto , Vicente Aranda's ordinary . The settings are awesome and the palaces and castles are a right manner to show the life style of those days along with the gowns , royal activities , aristocracy , the Middle Age way of life and mentality of those days . Perfect clothing and costumes by Javier Artiñano . Spotless pictorial cinematography by Paco Femenia , he carries out a photography with juicy atmosphere , being filmed on location in Burgos , Castelo de Guimarães, Portugal El Paular, Madrid, Guimarães, Portugal , Huelva, Andalucía, León, Castilla y León , Sigüenza, Guadalajara,Talamanca del Jarama, Madrid . Cameraman Paco Femenia is deemed to be one of the best Spanish cameraman with a long and prestigious artistic career .

The motion picture was lavishly produced by two great producers , Pedro Costa and Enrique Cerezo ; being professionally directed in his particular style by veteran filmmaker Vicente Aranda . He directed a series of award-winning movies firmly establishing him as one of the best Spanish filmmakers . His usual film editor is own wife , Teresa Font . Vicente is an expert on literary adaptations , he has been working from the 60s with ¨Fata Morgana¨ , Las Crueles¨ , ¨Novia Ensangrentada¨ , ¨Clara es el Precio¨ , among others . His greatest successes were intense dramas with plenty of sex such as ¨Amantes¨, ¨Pasion Turca¨ , ¨Si Dicen Que Cai¨ , ¨Intruso¨ , ¨Tiempo De Silencio¨ , ¨Carmen¨ , along with a delinquency tale : ¨El Lute¨I and II starred by Imanol Arias , his fetish actor and specially this historical story titled ¨Juana La Loca¨.

Other retelling about this known story based on the play by Manuel Tamayo Y Baus are the followings : A silent version (1909) by Ricardo Baños ; the Spanish classic ¨Locura De Amor¨(1948) by Juan De Orduña with Aurora Bautista as Doña Juana , Fernando Rey as Felipe El Hermoso , Sara Montiel as Aldara , Jorge Mistral as Capitán Don Alvar ; a comical rendition titled ¨Juana La Loca De Vez En Cuando¨ by Jose Ramon Larraz with Lola Flores as Reina Isabel I 'La Católica' , Beatriz Elorrieta as Infanta Doña Juana De Castilla , Jaime Morey as Felipe 'El Hermoso' , Manolo Gómez Bur as Cardenal Cisneros and Quique Camoiras as Fray Tomás de Torquemada .