Modes of the Tragic in Spanish Cinema

FAIN: FT-265054-19

Luis M. Gonzalez
Connecticut College (New London, CT 06320-4125)

Preparation for publication of a book about Spanish film and theories of tragedy, from 1930 to 2016.

Modes of the Tragic in Spanish Cinema is a groundbreaking study that, through a close reading of eleven films by renowned directors such as Florián Rey, Miguel Picazo, Pedro Almodóvar and Paula Ortiz analyzes filmic responses to the tragic and the enduring presence of forms, themes and motifs that belong to the tragic tradition in Spanish cinema. In this book, I argue that a tragic aura permeates many of the films produced in Spain in the 20th and 21st centuries and constitutes not only an essential element of these films but also a key factor in their aesthetic and ideological efficacy and commercial success. This is achieved by evoking an emotional response in the spectators and stirring up feelings of pity and fear that have defined the tragic art since its birth in Greece twenty-five centuries ago. This approach is original since most of the critical work on Spanish Film has been concerned with issues such as national identity, gender, and immigration.