MARIO GAUCI This acclaimed latter-day Saura effort touches on, or rather weaves together, a number of his lifelong concerns – the performing arts are here placed within the context of the Spanish Civil War. In that respect, it inevitably elicits memories of Ernst Lubitsch's WWII masterpiece TO BE OR NOT TO BE (1942) – but that film's blackly comic tones (deemed tasteless at the time) are here largely supplanted by genuinely less salubrious elements, notably grotesquerie and (unsurprisingly) eroticism!Incidentally, while the script (co-written by Saura and Rafael Azcona in what would prove to be their sixth and final collaboration) does clearly take the side of the "Loyalists" (epitomized by the recurring title song) against the winning "Nationalist" forces in the ongoing conflict, it wisely opts to stress a general anti-war feeling – since, by then, the alternative Communist doctrine was seen to have also reaped an oppressive system (the Berlin Wall had just been torn down when the film was made)! That said, it paints a clichéd picture of Italians (who naturally supported the soon-to-be-established Fascist dictatorship) as lovers of pasta and Neapolitan songs!The protagonists comprise a small-time variety act, but which is seen to go a long way on the woman's sensuality (she too is named Carmela and sings one of her numbers draped in the Republican flag!), her partner's penchant for rhythmic flatulence(!) and the sheer innocence of its third member, a mute boy (who, at one point, attempts to sell to the Italians the troupe's allegiance to their cause by inscribing "Viva Mulosini" {sic} on a tablet he carries around with him and, in another comic sequence, dutifully informs his boss that the delicious meat he is gorging himself on may well be that of a cat as opposed to rabbit!).

nandes-1 OK, first of all, whoever said that "The Pianist" was a precursor to this movie must not have noticed that "Ay Carmela" was released 8 or so years before it. Also, you probably need to come into this one understanding some of the complicated precepts involved in the Spanish Civil War and how it was more complicated than just one enemy, and that the Republican army was not unified either. This film does a decent job of communicating that complexity and speaking to the ambivalence that the Spanish nation felt (and still feels) about this terrible period in their history. Lastly, as the protagonists are artists, it is important to remember that under Franco many of Spain's leading artistic figures were forced into exile and or shot (as in the case of Garcia Lorca). Expecting to get a history lesson from a movie seems like the wrong motivation altogether for me, I mean these are characters placed into a historical context. So therefore if you know absolutely nothing about this period it may be smart to learn a little first and then appreciate the film through the lens of that knowledge.

Michael DeZubiria (spoilers) One of the things that I really like about this film is that its message can be delivered whether you know the situation in Spain at the time or not. The nationalists win violently at the end of the film, and you know the meaning of this without even having to know many historical details about the oppression of the Franco regime at the time that the movie takes place, which is important in making this movie internationally comprehensible. Carmela is a maternal figure both for her husband Paulino as well as for the young mute boy that they have taken into their care. They are entertainers seeking to escape the violence of the war, which is coming closer and closer to their home, but ultimately end up trying to entertain the Nationalist army and thereby win their freedom.There is a great scene at the beginning of the movie where Carmela and Paulino and Gustavete are performing for the rugged, less organized Republican army (sort of the roughnecks who have to defend themselves against the offenses of the Nationalists). This is a delightful performance that hugely entertains the audience, but it stops in its tracks as the sound of planes is heard overhead, and everyone in the room goes completely silent, waiting to hear the sound of bombs dropping. In this early scene, we see exactly what is going on in the film without having to have it delivered flatly through dialogue.We see the winners AND the losers in this film. The movie opens up with the performance for the Republicans, where everyone is having a good time including the performers, but by the end of the film, Carmela and Paulino and Gustavete have been captured and are nervously performing for the stolid Nationalist army, all the while terrified that they may say something wrong and offend the diminutive Franco in the front row (who reminds me of Lord Farquaad from Shrek) and be thrown back into prison or killed.The difference between the two armies is striking. The Republicans are clearly less organized, less trained, have less equipment, weapons, training, financial backing, etc, and most importantly, are very clearly there to defend themselves rather than wage war against the Nationalists. These are the peaceful people who are forced into a war situation by a regime that is about to attack them. The Nationalists, however, are a much more organized and well trained and funded group. They are, in fact, so organized, that the suits in the audience at the end of the film are literally color coded.The majority of the symbolism in the film is centered around Paulino, Carmela, and Gustavete. Carmela represents Spain, obviously, and her death at the end of the film represents the expiration of freedom and possibly the death of Spain itself. She tries to save everyone, worrying about the suffering of all people and therefore putting herself in danger in an effort to help them, while Paulino is much more realistic, concerned mostly with their own problems and saving themselves. He is not portrayed as selfish or as a coward, but as a realist. He knows that trying to fight against the Nationalists is simply not realistic and is a stupid way to get himself killed. Carmela died at the end of the film because she stood up against people that she had absolutely no power over.When Carmela is shot, Gustavete finally managed to get some sound out of his throat, representing a hope for the future. Carmela was killed, but Gustavete represents a new youth, and he has been given a voice by the display of violence put on by the Nationalist army, embodied in the one man who pulled the trigger. There is, however the fact that the Nationalists erupt into total confusion when things get rough at the end of the film, as well as the stunned look on the soldier's face when he realizes that he has killed Carmela, which shows that the movie is not about bad people, but about a bad ideology. The Nationalists are not portrayed as evil people, just people who made bad choices and got involved with a bad cause that did not turn out to be what they thought it was. This movie reminds me in a way of Life Is Beautiful (as does José Luis Cuerda's Butterfly), except that both the tragedy as well as the comedy are each reduced in each film. This is not a film about the power of stupid people in large groups, but rather the effect that a large idea can have on impressionable people. It warns against the dangers of being weak willed and simply going with the flow, the extremes that this kind of conformity can lead to. Clearly, this is a worst case scenario, but the film had a message that crosses time, culture, and international boundaries.

pintorperdido This is a film about human beings and how they cope with the nightmare of civil war. We are shown that people's reactions to this kind of ordeal are various. It is an extreme situation and this is conveyed very well by Carlos Saura - we watch people trying to forget where they are and enjoy themselves watching the antics of our variety troupe, only to be reminded of reality, as the sound of aircraft drowns out the performance. This theme of constantly being dragged back to the reality of war continues through the film. The acting is outstanding, Carmen Maura's in particular, and regardless of with whom our personal empathy may lie, Saura does not condemn individuals. Above all, the pain and sadness of a country at war with itself is expressed through the tortuous mental and emotional processes Carmela goes through.This film brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion. It says much about the value of human life,and the bewildering horror and absurdity of civil war.