This is a brooding and slow-moving drama concerning a few roles who suffer the consequences of their decisions .¨Con el Viento Solano¨ is Camus's early film , along with "Young Sanchez" and ¨Los Farsantes¨. In these films we find acute descriptions about lower classes, some atmospheric settings as well as attractive and troublesome roles. Being the adaptation by Mario Camus himself from a story by the prestigious writer Ignacio Aldecoa. In the course of a fight near Talavera de la Reina, the 28-year-old gypsy Sebastián Vázquez (Antonio Gades) first wounds a bartender. Then he gets difficulties because of a fight everything changes and subsequently he's relentless pursued by the Civil Guard. This causes a long flight through Madrid surroundings in which, among other people, a dancer (Vicente Escudero), the old friend José Gavero (Erasmo Pacula), his uncle (Antonio Ferrandis) and his mother (Imperio Argentina) are related. Meanwhile, the girlfriend Guadalupe (Maria José Alfonso) of the young gypsy attempts to guide his life in a proper way but she does not achieve.
Belonging to an irregular first half of the long career of the scriptwriter and director Mario Camus, he takes parts of the homonymous story by his admired writer Ignacio Aldecoa, whom he adapted into several of his novels. The film is acceptable but does not reach the results obtained with "Young Sanchez" (1983), and using a similar material. The existentialist style of the original story is maintained, the absurdity that sometimes governs the narrative becomes in the hands of Mario Camus a long and meaningless story, to which nothing favors the strong censorship of Francoist times. Nor does it add the little strength that Antonio Gades has had as an actor, being nevertheless an extraordinary dancer, as is proved when Antonio Gades y La Polaca dancing in some spectacular scenes. The main strength of the film resides on the adequate interpretations by a great cast of notorious Spanish secondaries, such as : María Luisa Ponte, Antonio Ferrandis, Erasmo Pascual, José Manuel Martín, Fernando Sánchez Polack, José Sepulveda, Rafael Hernández, Luis Marín, and the veteran of the 30s and 40s: Imperio Argentina
Con el viento solano(1966) stands out the colorful and brilliant cinematography by Juan Julio Baena showing poor outdoors from Madrid surroundings, Castilian villages from Talavera de la Reina, Toledo, Almorox, Escalona, Toledo, Castilla-La Mancha, España; Cogolludo, Guadalajara, and Griñon, Madrid. The motion picture was uneven but professionally directed by Mario Camus following his particular style. Camus was born in Santander , Cantabria , location in which often shoots his films . He worked with Carlos Saura in several screenplays during the early 60s as ¨Los Golfos¨ (1960), ¨ Llanto Por Un Bandido¨ (1964), and also directed some shorts . Camus shows a penchant for literary and perhaps he's the best Spanish film adapter, a fact that will be a constant in his films . His first feature films were ¨Los Farsantes¨ (1963) and ¨Young Sánchez¨ (1964), this is one of the greatest movies about boxing which won the Best Film Award at the Buenos Aires Festival . Mario has an important career with film and television adaptations quite remarkable , as he efficiently directed yarns based on notorious writers such as Perez Galdos , García Lorca , Cela Camilo José Cela and Miguel Delibes . During various decades he touched styles varying from romantic comedies and musicals with ¨Rafael¨ to splendid adaptations from famous novels , as is the case of the prestigious TV series "Fortunata y Jacinta" (1979) . In 1983 he was given the 'Medalla Oro De las Bellas Artes' (Arts Gold Medal), and one year later he prepared his most successful work both with public and critic : ¨Los Santos Inocentes¨ (1984), an adaptation from the novel by Miguel Delibes. Mario is an expert on interesting dramas as proved in ¨ The house of Bernarda Alba¨ , ¨La Colmena¨ which won the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival , ¨The days of the past ¨ and many others . Rating: 6.5/10. Better than average ; it's a decent film though sometimes slow-moving.
