2 reviews
Amusing and agreeable Spanish comedy splendidly played the great Fernando Fernán Gómez and competently written and directed from newcomer directors Luis Garcia Berlanga and Juan Antonio Bardem. Good-natured Juan (Fernando Fernán Gómez) marries likeable Carmen (Elvira Quintillá) , as they become an out-of-luck pair of young Spanish newlyweds . Juan starts suffering what he believes her and their friends' scorn at his proven inability to make an easy living . Meanwhile, Juan begings studying correspondence courses to obtain a degree as electrician . They have reached a delicate economic balance after their marriage . He works as an atrezzo worker at the cinematic CEA studios and Carmen as a seamstress and she's really raffles enthusiast. Their slight wages from allowing them to survive and fantasize about some whim . But good-for-nothing and unluck Juan is dismissed and with no employment until he's lured to an apparent sound business that will for sure make them rich . As he fights heavily in finding another job , but he gets nothing . As the optimist marriage are looking for work to buy a little flat and start a better life together , but they will face huge problems along the process and things go wrong . Eventually , they win a broadcasting contest : ¨Un Dia Feliz para una Pareja Feliz¨ sponsored by Soap Florit .
It is a good comedy of exquisite manners full of fine critical spirit and observation dealing with the enormous difficulties suffer a marriage throughout the post-war Madrid , adding some enjoyable flashbacks . Following the surprising adventures , misfortunes and incidents of this particular couple and their peculiar behaviors leading to hilarious situations . Some of them deserve to be mentioned , especially its final part , adding the filming a costumer film , when the intimate couple goes to the cinema and watching ¨Love affair (1939)¨ by Leo McCarey , and he tells how to shoot a travelling , as they spend a night at a Ferris wheel , among others . All this is compellingly told , including some attractive flashbacks with some extremely comical scenes , adding emphasis on some masterfully paced scenes . Also noteworthy are the soliloquies of the main roles who prove their huge presence and experience . It is plenty of nice critical spirit and resulting to be an observational comedy of social habits , it displays a cleverly subversive tone , and intelligent as well as engaging dialogue , resulting to be a "Sui Generis" comedy for the traditional Spanish cinema by that time and it influenced in subsequent films . Duo of warming protagonists are really magnificent . Support cast is frankly excellent with several familiar faces , such as : Felix Fernandez , Antonio Ozores , José Luis Ozores , Manuel Arbo, Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, Antonio Garisa , José Franco, , Paquito Cano, Rafael Bardem, Rafael Alonso , Francisco Bernal , Lola Gaos, José Orjas , radio man Matias Prats , José María Rodero who married Elvira Quintillá , José Luis López Vazquez's introduction and cameo by director Juan Antonio Bardem .
The picture is well set in the fifties , nicely photographed by the notorious cameraman Willy Goldberger , being stunningly shot on location , in streets and plazas of Madrid and Estudios Cinearte, Madrid , but a perfect remastering being necessary , that's why the film copy is washed-out . The flick was competent and with lively rhythm directed by Juan Antonio Bardem and Luis García Berlanga , in their first movie . This charming film very well performed by the classic actor Fernando Fernan Gómez who appeared in more than 200 films , made another 20 and wrote novels , plays and poetry . After his debut in "Manicomio" directed this great film "Life Ahead" with a great sense of humor as well as sparkling and witty dialogue , giving a fairly reliable analysis to show the society of the 50s . His turbulent career as a filmmaker has been little appreciated by the public , being more known for his acting career at the orders of other directors . This has made possible in part , we lose some of the gems that this director has given across his career . Fernando was one of the most complete Spanish Cinema artists and a member of the Spanish Royal Academy and one of the best actors of the film history . Along with Icíar Bollaín , he's the only person to have been nominated as performer El Abuelo (1998), director : El Viaje a Ninguna Parte (1986) and writer Lázaro De Tormes (2001) for three different movies at the Goya awards . He actually won in every category at least once . This prolific and prestigious actor also directed a few films , such as : ¨Lazaro De Tormes¨ , ¨Fuera De Juego ¨, ¨Mambrú Se Fue a La Guerra¨ , ¨5 Tenedores¨ , ¨5.000 Dias Juntos¨ , ¨Ninette¨ , ¨Venganza De Don Mendo¨ . These are stunning pictures but still far from the levels of talent would reach director years later with works like ¨El Mundo Sigue¨ (1963) ,¨El Extraño Viaje¨ that is today deemed a real ¨Cult Movie¨ and his greatest success ¨Viaje a Ninguna Parte¨ , the latter showing the harsh daily life of the traveler actors .
The motion picture was stunningly directed by two great maestros : Juan Antonio Bardem , and Luis García Berlanga . Berlanga directed successful and usually polemic films in the 50s , such as : ¨Welcome Mister Marshall¨ and ¨El Verdugo¨ which was well-received at the Venice Festival and along with ¨Bienvenido Mister Marshall¨ are considered to be two of the best Spanish films of the history . Their next joint venture was ¨Plácido¨ (1961), which received an Oscar nomination in 1963. That same year, Berlanga made one of his best films : ¨El Jueves Milagro¨ ; however, his strong portrait of Spanish society didn't please the pro-Franco authorities and was strongly censored . He continued filming other interesting pictures as in 1973 he went to Paris to begin filming ¨Grandeur nature¨ , another problematic film , focusing this time on the fetishism of a man who falls in love with a doll . Several years later, after Franco's death, he filmed a trilogy comprising ¨La Escopeta Nacional¨ (1978), ¨Patrimonio Nacional¨ (1981) and ¨Nacional III¨ (1982), where he clarified the disorders evident in the Spanish upper middle-class upon being confronted with a new political status quo . Following the same theme he filmed a peculiar comedy titled ¨La Vaquilla (1985¨, set in the Spanish Civil War until his last movie ¨Paris Tombuctu¨ (1999) . While Bardem directed the essential ¨Main Street¨or ¨Calle Mayor¨(1956) . Bardem was an outspoken critic of the Franco regime, his political views prevented him from gaining a diploma from the Spanish cinema institute in 1947 . Thereafter, he worked as a critic and finally broke into films as writer/director of the much acclaimed ¨Death of a cyclist¨ or Muerte De un Ciclista (1955), which won the 1956 Cannes International Critics Award . Other classic films he wrote or directed are the following ones: ¨Bienvenido Mr. Marshall¨ (co-directed by Luis Garcia Berlanga) , ¨Esa Pareja Feliz¨, ¨Comicos¨ , ¨Sonatas¨, ¨La Venganza¨, among others . Rating : Above average , essential and indispensable seeing for Spanish cinema fans .
It is a good comedy of exquisite manners full of fine critical spirit and observation dealing with the enormous difficulties suffer a marriage throughout the post-war Madrid , adding some enjoyable flashbacks . Following the surprising adventures , misfortunes and incidents of this particular couple and their peculiar behaviors leading to hilarious situations . Some of them deserve to be mentioned , especially its final part , adding the filming a costumer film , when the intimate couple goes to the cinema and watching ¨Love affair (1939)¨ by Leo McCarey , and he tells how to shoot a travelling , as they spend a night at a Ferris wheel , among others . All this is compellingly told , including some attractive flashbacks with some extremely comical scenes , adding emphasis on some masterfully paced scenes . Also noteworthy are the soliloquies of the main roles who prove their huge presence and experience . It is plenty of nice critical spirit and resulting to be an observational comedy of social habits , it displays a cleverly subversive tone , and intelligent as well as engaging dialogue , resulting to be a "Sui Generis" comedy for the traditional Spanish cinema by that time and it influenced in subsequent films . Duo of warming protagonists are really magnificent . Support cast is frankly excellent with several familiar faces , such as : Felix Fernandez , Antonio Ozores , José Luis Ozores , Manuel Arbo, Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, Antonio Garisa , José Franco, , Paquito Cano, Rafael Bardem, Rafael Alonso , Francisco Bernal , Lola Gaos, José Orjas , radio man Matias Prats , José María Rodero who married Elvira Quintillá , José Luis López Vazquez's introduction and cameo by director Juan Antonio Bardem .
The picture is well set in the fifties , nicely photographed by the notorious cameraman Willy Goldberger , being stunningly shot on location , in streets and plazas of Madrid and Estudios Cinearte, Madrid , but a perfect remastering being necessary , that's why the film copy is washed-out . The flick was competent and with lively rhythm directed by Juan Antonio Bardem and Luis García Berlanga , in their first movie . This charming film very well performed by the classic actor Fernando Fernan Gómez who appeared in more than 200 films , made another 20 and wrote novels , plays and poetry . After his debut in "Manicomio" directed this great film "Life Ahead" with a great sense of humor as well as sparkling and witty dialogue , giving a fairly reliable analysis to show the society of the 50s . His turbulent career as a filmmaker has been little appreciated by the public , being more known for his acting career at the orders of other directors . This has made possible in part , we lose some of the gems that this director has given across his career . Fernando was one of the most complete Spanish Cinema artists and a member of the Spanish Royal Academy and one of the best actors of the film history . Along with Icíar Bollaín , he's the only person to have been nominated as performer El Abuelo (1998), director : El Viaje a Ninguna Parte (1986) and writer Lázaro De Tormes (2001) for three different movies at the Goya awards . He actually won in every category at least once . This prolific and prestigious actor also directed a few films , such as : ¨Lazaro De Tormes¨ , ¨Fuera De Juego ¨, ¨Mambrú Se Fue a La Guerra¨ , ¨5 Tenedores¨ , ¨5.000 Dias Juntos¨ , ¨Ninette¨ , ¨Venganza De Don Mendo¨ . These are stunning pictures but still far from the levels of talent would reach director years later with works like ¨El Mundo Sigue¨ (1963) ,¨El Extraño Viaje¨ that is today deemed a real ¨Cult Movie¨ and his greatest success ¨Viaje a Ninguna Parte¨ , the latter showing the harsh daily life of the traveler actors .
The motion picture was stunningly directed by two great maestros : Juan Antonio Bardem , and Luis García Berlanga . Berlanga directed successful and usually polemic films in the 50s , such as : ¨Welcome Mister Marshall¨ and ¨El Verdugo¨ which was well-received at the Venice Festival and along with ¨Bienvenido Mister Marshall¨ are considered to be two of the best Spanish films of the history . Their next joint venture was ¨Plácido¨ (1961), which received an Oscar nomination in 1963. That same year, Berlanga made one of his best films : ¨El Jueves Milagro¨ ; however, his strong portrait of Spanish society didn't please the pro-Franco authorities and was strongly censored . He continued filming other interesting pictures as in 1973 he went to Paris to begin filming ¨Grandeur nature¨ , another problematic film , focusing this time on the fetishism of a man who falls in love with a doll . Several years later, after Franco's death, he filmed a trilogy comprising ¨La Escopeta Nacional¨ (1978), ¨Patrimonio Nacional¨ (1981) and ¨Nacional III¨ (1982), where he clarified the disorders evident in the Spanish upper middle-class upon being confronted with a new political status quo . Following the same theme he filmed a peculiar comedy titled ¨La Vaquilla (1985¨, set in the Spanish Civil War until his last movie ¨Paris Tombuctu¨ (1999) . While Bardem directed the essential ¨Main Street¨or ¨Calle Mayor¨(1956) . Bardem was an outspoken critic of the Franco regime, his political views prevented him from gaining a diploma from the Spanish cinema institute in 1947 . Thereafter, he worked as a critic and finally broke into films as writer/director of the much acclaimed ¨Death of a cyclist¨ or Muerte De un Ciclista (1955), which won the 1956 Cannes International Critics Award . Other classic films he wrote or directed are the following ones: ¨Bienvenido Mr. Marshall¨ (co-directed by Luis Garcia Berlanga) , ¨Esa Pareja Feliz¨, ¨Comicos¨ , ¨Sonatas¨, ¨La Venganza¨, among others . Rating : Above average , essential and indispensable seeing for Spanish cinema fans .
This brilliant satire on Spanish values and propaganda of the early fifties was the only film co-directed by Bardem and Berlanga when they left the national film school. It was actually made in 1951 but was not distributed until 1953, following the success of ¡Bienvenido Mr Marshall! which they co-scripted.