''Elisa, vida mía'' is a

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

written and directed by

Carlos Saura Carlos Saura Atarés (born 4 January 1932) is a Spanish film director, photographer and writer. Along with Luis Buñuel and Pedro Almodóvar, he is considered to be one of Spain’s most renowned filmmakers. He has a long and prolific career t ...

. The film stars Saura's long-term companion and frequent collaborator,

Geraldine Chaplin Geraldine Leigh Chaplin (born July 31, 1944) is an American actress. She is the daughter of Charlie Chaplin, the first of eight children with his fourth wife, Oona O'Neill. After beginnings in dance and modeling, she turned her attention to act ...

. She stars alongside Fernando Rey who won the Best Actor award at the

1977 Cannes Film Festival The 30th Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 to 27 May 1977. The Palme d'Or went to the ''Padre Padrone'' by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani. A new non-competitive section, "Le Passé composé", is held at this festival only and focuses on compilatio ...

for his performance.

Plot

On a secluded farmhouse in Castile and León, Luis is reunited with his estranged daughter, Elisa after a 20-year separation. On the farmhouse, Luis writes what appears at times to be both an autobiography and a novel. The book is played out, with memories of the past, such as when Luis walked out on his family and is mixed with fantasies about Elisa's adult life as well as her failed marriage.Canby, Vincent. ''Film: "Elisa, Vida Mia", pp. 8. The New York Times. 11 March 1983. Retrieved on 30 July 2011

Cast

as Elisa Santamaria/mother of Elisa * Fernando Rey as Luis *

Ana Torrent Ana Torrent Bertrán de Lis (born 12 July 1966) is a Spanish film actress. Early life and career Her debut came in 1973 with the starring role as "Ana" in the film ''El espíritu de la colmena'' (''The Spirit of the Beehive''), directed by V ...

as Elisa as child * Norman Briski as Antonio * Arantxa Escamilla as Niña Isabel * Jacobo Escamillaa as Niño * Francisco Guijar as Médico * Joaquín Hinojosa as Julián * Isabel Mestres

Reception

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' praised Chaplin and Rey; "The main reasons to see the film are the two leading performances. Mr. Rey is always an interesting presence, and Miss. Chaplin as in all of her Saura films, reveals qualities of feeling, control and beauty that no other directors have ever found." Saura was nominated for the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

for the film, and won Best Director at Spain's Cinema Writers Circle Awards.Awards for Elisa, vida mia
Retrieved on 30 July

References

External links

* 1977 films 1970s Spanish-language films 1977 drama films Spain in fiction Films directed by Carlos Saura Spanish drama films 1970s Spanish films {{1970s-Spain-film-stub