Passable film narrated in thriller style about a notorious thief and mythical character of the ¨Spanish Transicion¨. Polemic and crude film based on real events with exaggerated but decent direction by Vicente Aranda . Starred by ¨El Lute/Imanol Arias¨ , he is a young ¨Quincallero¨ , a hobo who falls in love for Chelo (Victoria Abril) . In 1965 he associates two small thieves (Antonio Valero and Carlos Tristancho) and rob a jewelry in street Bravo Murillo (Madrid) with unexpected consequences , one of them kills the owner . This first part of the history of "El Lute", deals with his imprisonment , strong tortures and being locked in El Dueso (Santoña , Cantabria) jail . Later on , he breaks out , dropping from a train and being subsequently detained (1973) . Nowadays , Eleuterio Sánchez , ¨El Lute¨ results to be a famed lawyer .
The movie gives an actual portrayal of a national myth ; packing social habits , intense drama , thrills , chills , brutal tortures and portentous interpretations . This is hard , provoking and stirring autobiography written the same Eleutorio Sánchez along with Joaquin Jordá and filmmaker Vicente Aranda . Concerning about a tough delinquent who became notorious in Spain for his prison getaways in the 60s and 70's , converting himself in a popular legend . Here there is a sour retelling about lower classes , and on gypsies as well as marginal people . It is filled with brutality , enhancing sex and violence ; containing an attack against torture with scenes being depicted in great detail and crudity , though it results to be shocking and excessive , displaying a detailed exploitation violence . It is understood that the crime in the title is committed by the Guardia Civil and Police in torturing the suspect . The meticulous and cruelty description of tortures bears remarkable resemblance to ¨El Crimen De Cuenca¨ by Pilar Miró , who was initially banned in Spain and the director subjected to military martial court. In ¨El Lute¨ stand out the fabulous acting by the main cast : Imanol Arias and Victoria Abril . Both of whom won awards in Festival De San Sebastian and Fotogramas De Plata . Furthermore , it displays a large support cast such as Diana Peñalver , Ricardo Palacios , Raúl Fraire , Manuel de Blas , José Canalejas , Jose Manuel Cervino , Antonio Dechent , Francisco Vidal , Manuel Zarzo , Luis Barbero , Francisco Piquer , Rafael Hernández , Luis Marín and several others . The 1th installment is plenty of action , thrills , realism and political remarks . It achieved big success and that's way it had a follow-up . The second part titled ¨El Lute , Mañana Seré Libre¨ (1987) in which he escapes from penitentiary ¨Puerto De Santa Maria¨, fleeing , hiding and finally re-captured , being realized by similar artist and technician team ; it has various folkloric elements , customs chronicles and being inferior to previous outing .
Colorful and appropriate cinematography by prestigious cameraman Jose Luis Alcaine who was first cinematographer to use fluorescent tube as "key" lightning and deemed to be one of the best Spanish cameramen . Alcaine frequently works with Pedro Almodóvar , Bigas Luna and Vicente Aranda , as he has photographed ¨The skin I live in¨ , ¨The bad education¨ , ¨Volver¨ , ¨Women in the verge of a nervous breakdown¨, among others . Evocative and sensitive musical score by Jose Nieto , Aranda's ordinary . The motion picture was well directed by Vicente Aranda who gives an interesting description of ¨La Otra España¨(the other Spain) during last years of General Francisco Franco dictatorship . Aranda considered to be one of the best Spanish filmmakers with known titles as ¨Carmen¨, ¨Pasión Turca¨, ¨Amantes¨, ¨Si Te Dicen Que Cai¨, ¨Celos¨ and several others .
