Cría cuervos . . .
Cría cuervos
Spain • 1976
Director
#403Criterion Collection →Synopsis
Carlos Saura’s exquisite CRÍA CUERVOS . . . heralded a turning point in Spain: shot while General Franco was on his deathbed, the film melds the personal and the political in a portrait of the legacy of fascism and its effects on a middle-class family (the title derives from the Spanish proverb: “Raise ravens and they'll peck out your eyes” Ana Torrent (the dark-eyed beauty from THE SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE) portrays the disturbed eight-year-old Ana, living in Madrid with her two sisters and mourning the death of her mother, whom she conjures as a ghost (an ethereal Geraldine Chaplin). Seamlessly shifting between fantasy and reality, the film subtly evokes both the complex feelings of childhood and the struggles of a nation emerging from the shadows.
Synopsis
Carlos Saura’s exquisite CRÍA CUERVOS . . . heralded a turning point in Spain: shot while General Franco was on his deathbed, the film melds the personal and the political in a portrait of the legacy of fascism and its effects on a middle-class family (the title derives from the Spanish proverb: “Raise ravens and they'll peck out your eyes” Ana Torrent (the dark-eyed beauty from THE SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE) portrays the disturbed eight-year-old Ana, living in Madrid with her two sisters and mourning the death of her mother, whom she conjures as a ghost (an ethereal Geraldine Chaplin). Seamlessly shifting between fantasy and reality, the film subtly evokes both the complex feelings of childhood and the struggles of a nation emerging from the shadows.
Criterion Closet Picks
(2)
Credits
Crew
DirectorCarlos Saura
WriterCarlos Saura
CinematographerTeo Escamilla
EditorPablo G. del Amo
ProducerElías Querejeta
Cast
Ana Torrentas Ana
Conchita Pérezas Irene
Mayte Sánchezas Maite
Geraldine Chaplinas María
Mónica Randallas Paulina