Archive of films Virgin of Lust / La virgen de la lujuría

Mexico / Spain / Portugal
2002, 110 min

Section: Tribute to Arturo Ripstein
Year: 2008

It’s 1940 and echoes of the war filter into Mexico with the refugees who turn up in the capital. The temptress Lola – Santa Lujuría (Holy Lust) – is a regular at the café Ofelia, and also the object of attentions from the waiter Ignacio. The young man falls in love with her and he’ll do anything to make her feel the same way. He’ll even kill Franco.


Synopsis

The Second World War also finds its way to Mexico’s capital city. Here, in the café Ofelia, a sadomasochistic relationship begins between the timid young waiter Ignacio and the mysterious Spanish prostitute Lola. The café and the entire arcade are authentic venues where intellectuals used to meet, along with Spanish emigrés who actually came here to hold their discussions. Paz Alicia Garcíadiego reworked the story by Max Aub; the tale concentrates on Ignacio who allows himself to be used by the inconstant Lola. It then moves towards its dramatic climax while the specific plot line is progressively broken down along various minor tangents, thus rendering the narrative somewhat confusing. Arturo Ripstein ultimately focuses for the most part on a faithful depiction of the period atmosphere using costumes and music, with the action played out in a studio location. While the literary model was a gently surrealistic anecdote about a Mexican waiter who gets himself involved in the attempt to assassinate General Franco, the film version transforms everything into moving images of national history. Although the film’s title conjures up a sense of erotic carnival, the work is more a salacious blend of television and film aesthetics. The long camera pans within an enclosed space provide the only dynamism in an otherwise highly compact, almost immobile huis clos environment, which every character colours with grotesqueness or political satire. In this case, the mock-up of the setting is not a veiled shortcoming, but the backdrop for a historical sketch.

Contacts

IMCINE - Mexican Film Institute
, 03100, Mexico City
Mexico
Tel: +52 55 5448 5300, +52 55 5448 5399
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.imcine.gob.mx

About the film

Color, 35 mm

Section: Tribute to Arturo Ripstein
   
Director: Arturo Ripstein
Screenplay: Paz Alicia Garcíadiego
Dir. of Photography: Esteban Llaca
Music: Leoncio Lara “Bon”
Editor: Fernando Pardo
Producer: Álvaro Garnica, Jorge Sánchez, Mate Cantero, Stephane Sorlat, Luisa Matienzo
Production: IMCINE – Mexican Film Institute
Cast: Luis Felipe Tovar, Ariadna Gil, Juan Diego, Julián Pastor, Patricia Reyes Spíndola, Alberto Estrella, Carmen Madrid, Daniel Giménez Cacho
Contact: IMCINE - Mexican Film Institute
   
www: www.imcine.gob.mx

Guests

Alejandro Díaz San Vicente

Film Institution Rep.

Arturo Ripstein

Film Director, Film Director


Paz - Alicia Garcíadiego

Screenwriter

YouTube

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