2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hopes and disllusions during Franco' s Spain!, October 21, 2007
This review is from: La Colmena (DVD)
The beehive is a very touching movie. Based on a play of Camilo Jose Cela (who additionally acts in the movie), the film begins with a lot of people in a tavern a true microcosms in which will shake hands, smart intellectuals (but without a dime in their pockets), young apprentices in the hard art of writing, wealthy men, business men, fawners, old ladies, a homosexual pianist that will arouse a set of bounded secondary plots, that reflect with formidable realism the merciless state of things in those difficult ages.
The brothel will be -believe or not- a very special meeting place where the most remarkable of the high social spheres, but besides the secret refugee of a poor writer who earns his life as a weekly columnist.
Mario Camus develops with secure hand this admirable compilation of these little stories pregnant of captivating drama, through a set of admirable vignettes; the love affair among a young lady and his consumptive lover who is in the eve of the death; the always present swindler; all of them trying to survive under that oppressive environment of Franco' s regime.
In my opinion, this outstanding masterwork should be labeled as the masterpiece of this hyper talented director. Special kudos for Agustin Gonzalez, Victoria Abril but the entire cast was extraordinary.
A marvelous and unforgettable artistic treasure from Spain.
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