THE FILMS OF CARLOS SAURA THE PRACTICE OF SEFING Marvin D'Lugoa unre Abeba slow mailconchs o pss ough istesitory without pa Ig tne to the gang Ton Mars pod sm ht he regu wl snk Uehonoreds The scene wth nal coseup of E Tempra Sistas ora porte “Tis seen poe crconm the progressive wasfomaton ode conceal pst nt a fo porte Sere I fre ents the {ial our of ar denusaton she neacio beweca he prot “it own acim andthe web este socal and plea eres thot ave nrre vai: he gang thing ven he al {ual Sinn. Bur the portato spme sai ject in Sa We. hoon fae te age t prs}, ut abo wan is sub. Jos ‘Mars cleaty ben dc bye asi convenons of oma poe route that nage hi eae, erin, Whe sin hat, fre Re wl et outa tapone tothe ng equ hat oes With Ue raat of his sued person in th prea Inport he pe Ibvnng eve for mul sinc thease garg pbs Tor ‘wh he ncds to a ob dean anders ede, bu alo foe 2 Kenan audience who wil aly ew him an portant be soc igus, Jor lawl» apes psn he same gare oF ‘onion ha aad an! aly enoapped the gan mm ia Hae The porta scne yt he damian concep sgn around wh Be whole of Jos ar i wake shape Te bind the sex Uators mere to te cha, a the very nn whe ames he ‘ure, weate avn bck in oder tie the oi consroton a4 thormaron of ou own popular eration of he end bapa. tere were Suma wan ome exp the elton fp res {be asthe convenions har shape popu cll iain. Dt, fern har ecogniton of pena sarin re conse de tthe peapont who iipy bracts al ce arco of pearance {iat ech fo him oc hs Ova ion of power El Tempeanilos tela ecognizon of town ratory of ale and dsl it ‘int in thelial pe othe in tarde he Dogan’ velo ‘her he mur ois wife and th newborn bby by royal rons "The murder ste culmination of sete of elo ye ryas (0 captive fone Mara ead of hse amps, the pan Was ays 0 ae fv of idng by apn i te Sch llega tis unto th they soa soni sod conta Joe Mars mos inmate nine de, hy conceal theta as wel. Though an a ars Joins death mas the ering oat a Foxe Mats ppyehe ant pal omnes He boson more ood tty tha ever Trieeand puss acounc cree gine the cow. Fnay, is od CS end sles im by evoking the esemblnce bewec Toxd Mars senerarons, 3 actions andthe cu yeas cartier of to: the sical he ad Idi i Joe site reo sated ina wok om which he emotional estranged, El Tem pal longer bold ay eae oh comes He Senually ‘Sp ths Ring mney, puriag dow hi sawing sing hey alse amy in prs of he eral and tn he al eon nese icad «muy eco ou of hire tad the mean bio of Since’ men. Av hye te ilpe, rele” psa pest woman esd of eo hoe he oe Nearing the aed tnd dtp Jot Mara pa. "Its avs the fmt old ema ow Wit ne ehh ew ns Sang rok ath edge fh od a the emouage eo he pote gue jot Mar pes yi ad yona ces th ee fe temporary Spaniards pone 3s thoy ae beween the tres of forenoon he pss ‘Sere ar son Tost Ma then eds he rope otic moun bout of his former conrad. In the ening enna es land he image of hie tes body dapel over hs hn Inger on the en na tre ame ‘e hart offaceen voce aa olenge ching mer fie seh ‘of he good tai” El TempaniicBnl vesa of is elt ‘hat scompaen spats death wok ot anther beige beeen {hehistorcl past andthe aden pooton athe rent The aus, Sea hope ile gh hand conenplaon he tho Fesidon na conrned rogerk conrad manip Ube into sod and idesogeal paciy. ‘espe concep ig Lamon rs Ba proved ofr eer sane than sss fl, er he poncace agit Sera an import Issn boutti ata of parish ones imal ha work have crcl impact on is se developmen ve the net dade, Newt ‘ety yom er nh encode gy, Be! Wan, Caren Sve the Majin, be wo rrr oh nos te eee ‘epiningsf anc otha the ha of Lament ra Boe Possibilities within the System Sura inerpreted the fale of Lament ir Bano bave ben the result ‘of his inablty to consol the artic development ofthe fim in both its production ar fia ding. This le hint recognize te imperative of ‘xhieving gener autora contro] over he work, thus sting the stage for fs willingness co collborate with Flas Questa on afl shorty aleePy cuarenn at the debacle of Lament: Quetta was a unlikely @ partes for Saura 3s [bis had bean, A former socer payer and seesflserptwrtr he had made two documentary fms eer in the decade, A rm de San ‘Sebatdn (1960: Inde San Sebati) an tds eal (1982: The Ins and Outs of Soe), encountering many ofthe sare censorship prob [Estat had hampered Sars work Flew, ike Sar, "ted of ting other people have the deson about fl” (Fuentes 1981, 12) Indeed, they shires numb of common impeessons ofthe dilemma of conte porary Spanish sare well a ofthe de situation of Spanish il peo “eton. Somewhat imperoouly, Quersjeta had desided to pure on his ‘own the formation of as independent production company he hoped might alate moce expressive, cetve lm peections. Though ies perenced in the franca aspects of im prodttion when he began peak {ng with Sanraaboat a possible coluboraton, Quereta ws, nonetheless, detemined ofa wat expitalize once special ners ssi and ‘wa her buys bythe recently published modieations inthe cesor ‘hip review procedure char now contained a se of expity state norms ‘of ceepabity upon which fim septs and inl pons woud be evalu tel ‘Querejets strategy was to calivat, in both the form and content ofa Spanish Sn, an “umcmationa” sl, one that might address v0 well dined auences, one Spaish and the oer ainsted cosmopolitan au Atience aos Dildos had only spoken of uch asl bu seemed tt know how to detelop i in his owh productions. Questa clearly eeog- zed ha serious Spanish cinema, ee kind Bae an Rerlang had at tempted in defies, had 2 severely limited domestic appeal, mostly for University students nd he incl commis in major metropolitan areas, I that aience could be paeed with alagee but equally welde fined foreign suience deongh a rigorously shape thematic focus, then a _smal- budget Spanish ln mghe wel prove isl rancally sessing ‘swells atistialy ai Quersjea plan tk nto accu fm the very star the fat of Spain's iy inthe work. To suceed with fm ip Spain mean ha You Trad to succead csawhere fst The key factor was 0 reach that foreign marke throagh entry of he Spanish ln nog fm Festal, a statey tha eagle the fl co rssine more ative supper than government reaucrts a previo been wang cr ale wo provide “That activism, howerer, had to begin wih the prodece and diets; thas, Qureets improvise an aayessve approach With che goverment’ ‘ln adeninration on The Has, his fist collaboration with Sara, that ‘would bose di hallmark of his success managerial syle over the next two decides Ths involve whst Quer called the “echnigue of the ut ‘om (Hminder Les 1986, Posoaliad 4), maining to sos, cone forthe enor approval and one fo acta shootng, then pearing {he ents vo accep even Wh mnt, sequences and logics the they would fave eet in the ear soneng scape Ques ‘ctv inca eve sie he poverinen ont with Hn] ‘kaon fom approval of ing wept he cscaton of i ns forse, Hieapposch pry the engsament of the Gan Ex cero administration, wich apps to ane to spore he Kind of fle uergees wax proponig. ‘What hi alway seemed to Sara an aver scatonsip with bu seats in he crworsip and subd oie: Quctes aw edfind {a tte sient othe its and onl sty the oncom while developing a mre sul appro o all eiqu within he abortion of he fm scope Under Questa tena, srs as tnked ro conto 01 postion ge tht a ole ss noe the asence of bis work scrips with ove cos dl eng aetna glance with te general cont of rocion, ad aly, x cnt Uhlovending of che aap auenes wikia she govetnent ae out ‘Seto whom the fn wok may be dice Th eacange fox aesping hs nations, whi he understood 0 be mote prac han concep in are, Straws en his el aence af comple pocion contol over» le mou ater 0 {ere oncly tht wih smal badge hana a tis spa in Lane fr Bonds, Te Hun flere hm te Rei sat ove contol ovr is work. (Bras 1974, 128) Ax wel earl econ, {Goer prot Sara with anal ighly proto echnical ero ‘sho woult renin with hin tough many ois ater successes. ong, these mere Las Cuda, dec of phorogeaphy, whose work would te pied x conmering in anoursunding way tothe Sara ouch Teo Esme camcraran, and Pablo dl Aro esi. bo prt of oer pln to prove te technical oat of Ri, ore my telived th par of te noncempetvens f Spanish 6 abroad wa Geos mete produc quay "No doe see eva of dasions wih Quer, Sau shied his ‘oneeption of The Hit away fom the sel vad mye that ec Ind mnipolit intl toward the pofing of he etal machinery of se india nw ind the norm of constrain socal nde fave been fred and are, With Angeino Fone ante set from the Natal Fil School, Sara des bee vein of apt sou four weckend ners even feo Be Bean 0 talk serous of {olaboeaton with Qurees “The theme of lr Ha ose 0 when [wn fling woe scenes f Lame or Bend, preci in Sime plce where er I wa oak the fle, The scenery of he ne free mprese me fom ie tar witha, eps ad