Dramatic picture about the consequences of Spanish civil war , being realized with academicism and general coldness . Madrid, 1940 , the Cordoba girl named Pepita (Mary Leon) comes to the capital , Madrid, to be near her sister, Hortensia (Inma Cuesta), pregnant and in prison of Ventas , she is framed as a rebellion convict , and subsequently is condemned to Death Row . She meets Paulino (Marc Clotet) , an evaded Guerrillero del ¨Maquis¨ and bourgeouis origin who fights in the Sierra and Pepita fall in love with him .
¨La Voz Dormida¨ results to be other of the innumerable stories to deal with dramatic deeds regarding the Civil War background . A familiar theme about the global horrors of a fratricide war , impossible to forget to our cinema . "The voice asleep¨, adapted from the novel by Dulce Chacón and directed by Benito Zambrano entered the Spanish selection for Oscar being finally superseded by other flick in similar tendency , "Pa Negre (black bread)" .
Benito Zambrano (Solas , Padre Coraje , Habana Blues) , also writes the script along with with Ignacio del Moral, filmed in his usual formal and stylistic scholarship , without leaving a trace the thought-provoking issues , in terms of dramatic and narrative excitement .Including a spotless pictorial cinematography by Alex Catalan (Even the rain , Camino , Room in Rome) and a willingness , almost perfect of the elements of each shot , every sequence, every space, the main problem has to face "The voice asleep", beyond not being able to avoid falling into the politic pamphlet is precisely derived from the coldness of its staging, which eventually become monotonous over two hours of footage . Because the story needs a vibration more real than the one offered in this slow-moving and sometimes boring film .
But anyway, its is compensated with the great performances from Maria Leon and Inma Cuesta , interpreters who provided a considerable boost to the result . Zambrano is a great director of actors and the main players are complemented by a good cast of secondaries (Ana Wagener, Berta Ojea , Lola Casamayor, Lizarralde , Susi Sanchez , Myrian Gallego , among others) forming a powerful human group of women and giving excellent interpretations .
In the 26th Annual Goya Awards , presented by the Academia De las Artes y Ciencias Cinematográficas De España (Spanish Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences), main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards , ¨La Voz Dormida¨ won deservedly , prize to Best New Actress (Mejor Actriz Revelación) María León , being nominated the best director Benito Zambrano , furthermore , Maria Leon Won Silver Seashell Best Actress in San Sebastian International Film Festival .
