Everything takes place in the times of Felipe II when he begins to lose all the lands conquered by his father Carlos I. While King Felipe II (1559-1598) agonizes in the shadow of his lost splendor, a man, defying divine designs and human justice, turns his passions into destiny and his will into law. Don Juan shows up before this panorama, a man who will see his wishes fulfilled .This Don Juan, masterfully interpreted by Fernando Guillen (a Goya winner), is an already mature man who desperately tries to enjoy the moment, and when he has succeeded, he finds that it is like water slipping through his fingers, making it impossible for him to stop that instant. His fame is as great as his pride and ambition . His damnation, eternal. His name, a legend: Don Juan. This a free adaptation based on Moliére's "Don Juan".
Drama with historical and tragic elements ; including enjoyable performances and adequate set design. The first impression that this interesting and outlandish film gives me is that we are looking at a precious and luxurious work with unusual dialogues , in which philosophy and thought-provoking sentences abound. The moralistic story of Don Juan is revised by Gonzalo Suarez, an admirer of Igmar Bergman's cinema, trying to bring to life a new epic adventure about the destiny of man. The atypical director, if he has an offbeat career, as he's a peculiar Spanish filmmaker, a novelist turned filmmaker who reached his creative maturity with "Paddling in the Wind" or "Rowing with the wind" and here he suggests a personal reflection on the figure of Don Juan, but ignoring the works of Tirso de Molina and Zorrilla, in his opinion too romantic, to get closer to Molière's version.
The title of the film belongs to a poem by Baudelaire: "The flowers of evil". His conquests in the bedroom hardly have any importance, the figure of Don Juan will persist as long as the concept of seducing subsists in man beyond love, while linking with the main characteristic of the literary figure . Suarez portrays him with sympathy, it is undeniable that the director shares the capacity for rebellion against that society that rejects his philosophy. Stars Fernando Guillén giving a fine acting as the seducer Don Juan , along with Mario Pardo as his assistant Esganarel . And a plethora of familiar secondaries , such as : Charo López as Doña Elvira , Héctor Alterio , Ana Álvarez, Manuel de Blas, Iñaki Aierra, Yelena Samarina , Ayanta Barilli, Alicia Sánchez, Joan Potau and Cayetana Guillén Cuervo , Fernando Guillén's daughter.
From a personal and surreal iconography, the filmmaker modifies the age of the libertine and shows us an aging seducer, how decadence makes an appearance, and death inevitably approaches him: "I have faith that death is a woman" , displaying some attractive frames at the end , when Don Juan is transported on the boat by Caronte through the lagoon Estigia . Another important detail introduced by the Asturian director has been to place the story in the time of Felipe II, Iñaki Aierra incorporates with absolute conviction a ruler who in some way is the counterpoint of the figure of Don Juan. If he tries to recover the joy of living, the decrepit monarch, dying like the Spanish empire, intends to abolish laughter forever.
It contains an evocative and emotive musical score by Alejandro Masso . Colorful and evocative cinematography by Carlos Suarez , brother's director , being filmed on marvelous landscapes with filming locations from El Escorial, Madrid, Segovia, Castilla y León, Toledo, Castilla-La Mancha, Sanabria, Zamora, Castilla y León , Guadalajara, Castilla-La Mancha, Cuenca, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain . The photography is delicate and captivating, as are the costumes and art direction. Direction by Gonzalo Suarez is pretty good , he shows his skill for edition , displaying agreeable dramatic tension and realizing long shots with surrealist images and competently realized . Gonzalo Suarez is a good craftsman who has directed several films from the 60s . He excelled at bringing to life tautly written tales about strange characters facing difficult circumstances and dealing with thought-provoking , brooding stories . Throughout his career he regularly alternated hits with misses . He has stylistic trademarks , but also been criticized for his slow-moving films , though his best flicks remain exciting to watch . Among his most important pictures , mostly dramas , are the following ones : 1994 The detective and death , 1992 La Reina Anónima , 1991 Don Juan en Infiernos ,1988 Rowing with the wind , 1984 Epílogo ,1977 Parranda , 1977 Reina Zanahoria , 1976 Beatriz , 1975 La Regenta , 1974 La Loba y la Paloma . Rating : 6/10 . Decent rendition about Don Juan myth ..
