Starring Antonio Gades, Laura Del Sol and Paco de Lucia
Written and directed by Carlos Saura based on the novel by Prosper Merimee
Production year 1983
Running time 102 minutes
Based on the book by Prosper Merimee this dazzling and passionate drama tells the story of a flamenco group who are rehearsing Bizet’s opera Carmen. As time goes on their lives begin to resemble those of the characters in the opera. When the actress playing Carmen begins an affair with the choreographer Antonio - their involvement, like those of the lovers in the opera, seems set to lead to a lethal climax.
Carlos Saura is one of Spain’s finest and most idiosyncratic directors - his ‘Flamenco Trilogy’ consisting of Blood Wedding, Carmen and Love The Magician is uniquely Spanish in flavour - with dance at its very heart. Antonio Gades, who plays the choreographer Antonio in this film, arranged the brilliant flamenco sequences which punctuate the three movies.
In Carmen these dance numbers are set alongside scenes from the opera as well as the dramatic scenes in the 'real world’. The virtuoso guitarist Paco de Lucia, who died just last month, plays a musician in the film. Carmen won the BAFTA for best foreign language film as well as the Technical Grand Prize and a prize for Best Artistic Contribution at Cannes. Saura, now in his 80s, continues to direct films often with classical music or dance as an integral part.
