• Belle Époque

6/27/25 (Fri)

Fernando Trueba’s 1993 Oscar-winning comedy was leaving Criterion at the end of this month, and having enjoyed his innovative They Shot the Piano Player, I decided on a whim to check it out.

The light-hearted film is set in the Spanish countryside in the early 1930s when the nation is tottering on revolution. The title refers to the director’s vision of the brief interlude between the toppling of the monarchy and the start of the Franco regime. Fernando, a handsome soldier and wide-eyed innocent, has gone AWOL after an unsuccessful uprising and is wandering the countryside. He is befriended by an old bohemian painter living alone in a sprawling house. They become close, helped by the boy’s cooking skills and companionship. When the man’s family is set to visit, Fernando decides to move on to Madrid to seek a future. As he is about to board the train, however, he gets a look at the man’s four nubile daughters just alighting – and decides to hang around a bit longer.

It’s pretty clear right away where this is going, but the fun is in getting there. Continue reading →