I’m Javier Zurro and this week I’m writing you the Culture newsletter.
Pedro Almodovar has visited the editorial office of elDiario.es and has given us a generous and sincere interview. He talks about his new film – don’t miss it The next room, which premieres today -, about his cinema, about the political moment in Spain and as always, he has positioned himself politically. Why shouldn’t I?
In recent weeks, since the filmmaker made a speech at the Venice Film Festival against the extreme right, there have been many voices (oh, surprise, all conservative) that criticize a film director giving his opinion on topics other than those. .. the cinema. How much blindness. First, any artist, as a Spanish citizen, can make whatever criticism he wants, and if he has a microphone in front of him he will take advantage of it. I wish all those people had criticized the sexist comments of many very successful and recently retired athletes.
But we must go further, is it possible to have art that is not political? It is not. There are politics in Marvel. There is politics in any series that shows young people living in apartments that they cannot afford and of course there is politics in the cinema of Pedro Almodóvar, whose opinions are listened to attentively around the world and criticized in his country.
I leave you here so you can continue with the newsletter and, as I imagine you feel like opening a book when you finish. Like every week, I propose three movies, and my partner Laura García Higueras, three plans to enjoy the weekend. In addition, I have chosen three articles that I don’t want you to miss from everything we have published in Culture this week.
Three recommended articles
Three recommended films, by Javier Zurro
- The next room: Pedro Almodóvar premieres film. Already. There shouldn’t be any more reasons to go see The Room Next Door, but on top of that it has won the Golden Lion, it is his first film in English, it has Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore and it is a emotional, austere and wonderful look at dignified death and a hymn to the power of empathy. One of the movies of the year. You can’t miss it.
- Valencian: Valencian Community. 90s. Corruption. Manipulation of public television. Sensationalism. Alcasser. Cod Route. Does it sound familiar to you? Well, they are going to have a great time with this satire on the dark side of those years that Jordi Núñez has signed and with a wonderful Zaplana transcript. On top of that, the film arrives at an unbeatable moment, with Zaplana sentenced to ten years in prison.
- Godard + Costa: No, it’s not the name of a movie. They are the surnames of two filmmakers. Two essentials that between long and long were never forgotten nor are they forgotten about the short. Godard, before dying, shot two. Costa is still active and last year he filmed one. It is rare that someone dedicates time to short films, but the distributor Atalante has opted for them… and in theaters.
Three plans for the weekend, by Laura G. Higueras
- Poblenou Scene Contemporary Creation Festival. Memory, a positive spirit and a critical sense of humor – a wonderful combo, if you ask me – are going to be the central axes of this festival which will have 24 proposals that cover theater, performance, circus and clowning. Leo Bassi, Hermanas Picohueso, Gina Vila and Sílvia Capel are some of the artists who will perform these days in Barcelona. Very much in favor of part of its program being dedicated to the training of professionals.
- Mechanical Containment. Zaida Alonso directs this work that addresses the psychiatric violence suffered by psychiatrized people in the care services themselves. The work is put together in the form of documentary theater, with first-person testimonies and will be seen this Friday at the Teatro del Barrio in Lavapiés and on Saturday at the Teatro Salón de Cervantes in Alcalá de Henares.
- Ha! Festival. This weekend ends International Festival of Literature and Art with Humor Ha! in Bilbao. This Friday there will be a meeting between Manuel Vilas and Ignacio Echevarría who will talk about Kafka’s humor, on Saturday between Rodrigo Cortés and Andrés Ibáñez, and Reiner Stach; and on Sunday the director Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón will comment on his ten favorite comedy sequences.
Librotea’s recommendations
This week, Librotea proposes books for the gap, books by women writers and even a selection by Juan Gómez Bárcena:
Every Friday morning Elena Cabrera works as a cultural prescriber in a bulletin that summarizes current cultural events in a first part that highlights some of the stories published by the section that week. The newsletter has three fixed blocks: 3 section stories; 3 cultural plans chosen by Laura G. Higuera and 3 film recommendations chosen by Javier Zurro. In addition, the last newsletter of the month Gerardo Vilches chooses three comics.
#premiere #Room #Door #Almodóvar #films #plans #weekend
