An entertaining and thoroughly meaningful film that is noteworthy for its extreme sentiment and strong dramatic performances among three likeable and mysterious characters. They are: Cesar (Francisco Rabal), an old child prodigy turned magician, Pilar (Concha Velasco), his wife's younger sister, with whom he travels around Galicia in a bus projecting movies in lost towns without cinema, and Saga (Victoria Abril) , an attractive and mysterious young woman whom they meet along the way.
Within the traditional comedy of manners written and directed by Jaime De Armiñan, on this occasion he tries to narrate an unusual love triangle with magic touches. Here Cesar pretends to be a magician and travels from city to city with Pilar to lure the money out of people's pockets with their magical shows, but then they encounter Saga, a real witch who makes his magic come true. Jaime Armiñan makes the usual story supported with a certain sensitivity and mystery, although it contains some routine and boredom. Slow, but with deliciously intelligent dialog, keen, full of irony, sensibility and poetry. This is an enjoyable movie , thought slow-moving , plenty of feeling , irony , and reflections about what's actually necessary in life. Allegedly the film focuses on a keen portrait about three particular roles, while surrounding them the gorgeous Galician outdoors. Engaging and charming dialogues, including phrases from poems written by famous writers, such as: Miguel de Cervantes y Saavedra, Francisco de Quevedo, Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Rosalía de Castro, Rubén Darío and Federico Oliver. Although there are some themes hard to believe, it depicts failthfully the tragic consequences of a deep infatuation, it keeps you thinking about mature people for quite a while. Beyond its quirky characters, the wonderful interpretations of the leading trio and the photography of one of the best directors in the history of Spanish cinema stand out: Teo Escamilla. Shot on marvellous locations in Castro de Troña, Pías, Ponteareas, Pontevedra, Barcia de Mera, Covelo, A Guarda, Fornelos de Montes, Pontevedra, Galicia.
The motion picture was well directed by Jaime De Armiñan. He started his long career as a prestigious screenwriter. Among his scripts credits during this time are : El Secreto de Mónica (Monica's Secret) (1961), El juego de La verdad (The game of Truth) (1963),and El diablo bajo la Almohada (The devil under the Pillow). As the natural progression in his work in films, Armiñán moved to become a film director. He made his debut as a director with his own scripts in 1969 with Carola de día, Carola de noche, (Carola by day and by night ), a project tailor-made to revive the sagging career of former child star, Marisol who, at age 21, was starring her first role as an adult. This was followed by the equally forgettable: La Lola dicen que no vive sola (1970) (Lola does not live alone), a comedy about a prostitute who promises to Virgin Mary not to have sex again if her daughter recovers from an illness to the disappointment of the men around her. While this first two directorial attempts came and went with little notice, Armiñán won acclaim with his third effort: Mi Querida Señorita (My dearest Señorita) (1971) a project developed out of a collaboration with José Luis Borau. The film, starring the popular Spanish actor José Luis López Vázquez, tells the story of a repressed provincial spinster who late in life discovers that she is really a man and moves to the city to explore his new sexual identity. Mi Querida Señorita was a critical and popular success and was nominated in 1972 for the Oscars in the Foreign Language film category. After the comedy Un casto varón español (1973), Armiñán made El amor del Capitan Brando (1974) (The Love of Captain Brando) a film that follows with sensitivity the relationship of Aurora, a young school teacher, with two men of opposite generations who fall in love with her: Fernando, a middle-aged republican exile, and Juan, a thirteen-year-old boy who enjoys playing acting in Westerns. El amor del Capitan Brando was a big commercial success. During the post Franco period, Armiñán sought ways to express both his political and social themes, but with varying degree of success. Nunca es tarde (1977) (Never too Late) recounts in parodied fashion the miraculous pregnancy of a woman in her eighties through her mystical identification with a young male neighbor whom she claims is the child's spiritual father. A more pointed narrative of sexual and political repression comes through in Al servicio de la mujer española (At The service of the Spanish Woman) (1978), which parodies with black humor the puritanical sexual values of the francoist culture that outlived the regime and continued to shape provincial life. Armiñán most acclaimed film of this period is El Nido (The Nest) (1980) in which an aging widower (Hector Alterio) falls for an adolescent girl played by Ana Torrent who won the best actress award at the Montreal film festival for her performance, and the film was also nominated for an Oscar that year; this was Armiñán second nomination. And another hit as La Hora Bruja (The Witching Hour) (1985) with a great cast as Francisco Rabal, Concha Velasco and Victoria Abril involving the activities of a lascivious traveling magician . Armiñán's filmography over the next fifteen year remained notably slender, largely due to his return to television and his highly successful scripting of several dramatic series as the big hit Juncal. In 2008 Armiñán returned to directing films with 14, Fabian Road, starring Argentinian actress Julieta Cardinali, Ana Torrent and Ángela Molina. Rating La hora bruja (1985): 6.5/10.
Within the traditional comedy of manners written and directed by Jaime De Armiñan, on this occasion he tries to narrate an unusual love triangle with magic touches. Here Cesar pretends to be a magician and travels from city to city with Pilar to lure the money out of people's pockets with their magical shows, but then they encounter Saga, a real witch who makes his magic come true. Jaime Armiñan makes the usual story supported with a certain sensitivity and mystery, although it contains some routine and boredom. Slow, but with deliciously intelligent dialog, keen, full of irony, sensibility and poetry. This is an enjoyable movie , thought slow-moving , plenty of feeling , irony , and reflections about what's actually necessary in life. Allegedly the film focuses on a keen portrait about three particular roles, while surrounding them the gorgeous Galician outdoors. Engaging and charming dialogues, including phrases from poems written by famous writers, such as: Miguel de Cervantes y Saavedra, Francisco de Quevedo, Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Rosalía de Castro, Rubén Darío and Federico Oliver. Although there are some themes hard to believe, it depicts failthfully the tragic consequences of a deep infatuation, it keeps you thinking about mature people for quite a while. Beyond its quirky characters, the wonderful interpretations of the leading trio and the photography of one of the best directors in the history of Spanish cinema stand out: Teo Escamilla. Shot on marvellous locations in Castro de Troña, Pías, Ponteareas, Pontevedra, Barcia de Mera, Covelo, A Guarda, Fornelos de Montes, Pontevedra, Galicia.
The motion picture was well directed by Jaime De Armiñan. He started his long career as a prestigious screenwriter. Among his scripts credits during this time are : El Secreto de Mónica (Monica's Secret) (1961), El juego de La verdad (The game of Truth) (1963),and El diablo bajo la Almohada (The devil under the Pillow). As the natural progression in his work in films, Armiñán moved to become a film director. He made his debut as a director with his own scripts in 1969 with Carola de día, Carola de noche, (Carola by day and by night ), a project tailor-made to revive the sagging career of former child star, Marisol who, at age 21, was starring her first role as an adult. This was followed by the equally forgettable: La Lola dicen que no vive sola (1970) (Lola does not live alone), a comedy about a prostitute who promises to Virgin Mary not to have sex again if her daughter recovers from an illness to the disappointment of the men around her. While this first two directorial attempts came and went with little notice, Armiñán won acclaim with his third effort: Mi Querida Señorita (My dearest Señorita) (1971) a project developed out of a collaboration with José Luis Borau. The film, starring the popular Spanish actor José Luis López Vázquez, tells the story of a repressed provincial spinster who late in life discovers that she is really a man and moves to the city to explore his new sexual identity. Mi Querida Señorita was a critical and popular success and was nominated in 1972 for the Oscars in the Foreign Language film category. After the comedy Un casto varón español (1973), Armiñán made El amor del Capitan Brando (1974) (The Love of Captain Brando) a film that follows with sensitivity the relationship of Aurora, a young school teacher, with two men of opposite generations who fall in love with her: Fernando, a middle-aged republican exile, and Juan, a thirteen-year-old boy who enjoys playing acting in Westerns. El amor del Capitan Brando was a big commercial success. During the post Franco period, Armiñán sought ways to express both his political and social themes, but with varying degree of success. Nunca es tarde (1977) (Never too Late) recounts in parodied fashion the miraculous pregnancy of a woman in her eighties through her mystical identification with a young male neighbor whom she claims is the child's spiritual father. A more pointed narrative of sexual and political repression comes through in Al servicio de la mujer española (At The service of the Spanish Woman) (1978), which parodies with black humor the puritanical sexual values of the francoist culture that outlived the regime and continued to shape provincial life. Armiñán most acclaimed film of this period is El Nido (The Nest) (1980) in which an aging widower (Hector Alterio) falls for an adolescent girl played by Ana Torrent who won the best actress award at the Montreal film festival for her performance, and the film was also nominated for an Oscar that year; this was Armiñán second nomination. And another hit as La Hora Bruja (The Witching Hour) (1985) with a great cast as Francisco Rabal, Concha Velasco and Victoria Abril involving the activities of a lascivious traveling magician . Armiñán's filmography over the next fifteen year remained notably slender, largely due to his return to television and his highly successful scripting of several dramatic series as the big hit Juncal. In 2008 Armiñán returned to directing films with 14, Fabian Road, starring Argentinian actress Julieta Cardinali, Ana Torrent and Ángela Molina. Rating La hora bruja (1985): 6.5/10.
