dlkohrs Reviews

Butterfly Wings (1991)

"Alas de mariposa" potently challenges the viewer with the re-examination of the female in a patriarchal society.

[11 November 2000]

Although we live under the premise that equality between men and women has consistently improved over the past three decades, the potent film "Alas de mariposa" ("Wings of the Butterfly") presents a startling contrast to this notion. Set in the Basque region of Spain, the director Juanma Bajo Ulloa portrays a modern family in the 1990's who is consumed with the obsession to have a son to carry on the family name. Ironically, it is the mother, Carmen, who is determined to continue the patriarchal dominance rather than the submissive father, Gabriel, as a result of living under the shadow of her father's resentment. While focusing on the repression of the feminine identity and the subsequent violence that is imposed upon the young daughter Ami, the spectator can draw parallels to the repression of the Basque independence and identity in the Northeast section of Spain.

While using revealing chiaroscuro lighting, "Alas de mariposa" contains various symbolic scenes that augment the patriarchal ideology through closed frames which denote the trapped family. The opening scene of the movie summarizes the rejection of the female throughout the film when the grandfather refuses to accept the birth of his granddaughter. Preceding scenes of the storm, ruination of the family painting that Ami draws, Carmen's rejection of Ami during her pregnancy and even the egg that breaks during the parallel montage of Ami's fall represents the broken possibility of life. The only moments in which Ami, the daughter, feels free and uninhibited is through the creation of her art, yet ironically the only time she can draw the butterfly wings is between the death of her grandfather and the birth of her little brother. The butterfly wings seem to symbolize her momentary freedom and liberty, while the skeletal frame represents her lack of freedom.

The vicious ideological circle in "Alas de mariposa" slowly rotates around the father's idealist attitude, the mother's forceful dominance, the daughter's rejection, the pregnancies and hurtful actions. The entire film encourages the viewer to evaluate the remaining patriarchal holds still remnant in society. "Alas de mariposa" is a compelling movie that questions the force of ideologies, portrays the victims and offenders of these philosophies, and the effect that they have on freedom and liberty. It is an eye-opening movie that challenges the audience with the re-examination of creeds that society imposes on the individual as well as the group.

The Spirit of the Beehive (1973)

creatively captivates the viewer through images rather than words and leaves you wondering after the last scene has ended.

[28 October 2000]

This is an enchanting movie about two young sisters caught in the silence of post-war Spain. While representing the isolation of Spain in that era and the lack of communication that persisted throughout the country, "El espíritu de la colmena," by Victor Erice in 1973, fascinated me with its use of dramatic chiaroscuro lightening, large panoramic shots and the use of fades to connect scenes while commenting on the time warp that Spain endured after the war.

Without using much dialogue in the movie, Erice artistically comments on the political tension in Spain through potent images and scenes. He uses symbols such as the two young sisters to represent the division between the Republican and Nationalist parties, and the leitmotif of the beehive to represent the "trapped" workers in Spain under Franco. The most amazing aspect is that all of the post-war commentary is said without any words and without mentioning the actual event! It is a "cine de espectáculo," or spectacle cinema, that symbolizes the connection between fantasy in the movies and fantasy in reality. Without knowing the history of Spain, a spectator could misinterpret the movie as a commentary about the imagination of a little girl after viewing the movie "Frankenstein." The character of Frankenstein is a main component contributing to Ana's, the younger sister, interpretation of reality in Spain, and it gains meaning as Frankenstein evolves from a character in the movie to an object of fantasy. It continues to evolve into a man of flesh and bones and finally represents the hope of Ana when all other sources of information in her life turn out to be faulty.

"El espíritu de la colmena" is a powerful movie that uses many metaphors (such as Ana for the young, innocent generation of Spain) to question the interpretation of reality. It is a powerful, artistically made movie that captivates the viewer through images rather than words. It should be seen more than once in order to understand all it's hidden messages.