El Sur

A beautiful film that handles its mystery with grace, never going behind the curtains but orchestrating enough plot movement to feel complete. An excellent examination of the peculiar connection we have with our parents - despite never /really/ knowing who they are.

A film about a young girl who realizes she has no idea who her father is. This frightening discovery weighs heavy on her heart, especially because the problem appears intractable. The only way to truly know her father would require access to the past, and that past has, as the film increasingly makes obvious, been buried with the Spanish Civil War. It's unfortunate Erice took the advice of his producer and didn't go on to direct what would have been the second half of this film.

Gorgeous film, using natural light in interior shots--evoking paintings by 19th Century masters. The film is a coming-of-age tale, with the feel of a personal memoir, centering around a girl and her father--depicting the way becoming an adult coincides with an awareness that a father is a complex human being--marking the end to the simple but magical bond they had. Excellent direction and structuring of the story with beautiful poetic moments. I prefer this over Spirit of the Beehive. On Hulu+

A girl who loves her father gradually learns that she must run ahead to her past (Heidegger), but as an echo between an already-there she has lived and an already-there she hasn't lived but which awaits her in letters, photographs, movies and artifacts of all kinds (Stiegler). The extreme care taken with all aspects is evident, and the very beautiful result flows with an almost hypnotic, dreamlike rhythm. One can tell that the abrupt ending isn’t quite what was intended, but it just about works.

I kinda hate giving this a bad score. There's certainly nothing offensively bad going on here, and the film is beautifully shot. Still, if feels merely like Erice is exorcising left-over ideas 10 years after Spirit of the Beehive.

For the first first hour the film is a wonderfully paced story about a little girl growing up and looking at her father's life through her eyes. In the last half hour it seems to shift a bit in tone and stumbles, but the result is still an enjoyable and touching film with great direction.

Watchable, but nothing to write home about. If you're expecting another Spirit of the Beehive, this doesn't quite match up.

About the enchantment and disenchantment of a father, the difficulty to spiral in the weight and complexity of memory, and in the end and despite everything, the longing for his default (of origin) that holds open his little girl's desire and life. Delicate, hypnotic, melancholic, and extremely beautiful. And despite the recognisable prematurity of the end, it somehow works.

I don't have anything bad to say about this movie. It's narrated by a woman reflecting on her girlhood and the memories of her father. Well-acted, nicely understated and photographed with a golden glow, it's a lovely, somber piece about the weight of the past (and for the Spanish viewer, I'm sure, some subtle social commentary). But even though it has much common with Spirit of the Beehive, it just didn't take hold of me the way that film did. Enjoyed watching it, but I didn't love it.

The running time felt like it went pretty fast, considering that not a whole lot is happening, and it has a patient approach to editing. What this really foregrounded, by the time it was over, was how the film spends itself going nowhere in particular. Not at all a chore, but I personally failed to apprehend much of significance,

Somber, restrained, and completely beautiful. This is a fully realized vision. It's a tragedy that Erice works so infrequently. It was no Spirit of the Beehives for me, but Erice works so well with child characters and capturing certain universal events, like realizing your parents are actual people as you age and learn more about them. I wanted to see even more at the end, and that's always a good sign. Great film.

Jan 07, 2018 Kurtköy

Gentle film well acted with striking images. However, so breezy that it is certain to be completely forgettable. Curious as to what was left to be filmed.

I feel like I enjoy The Secret of the Beehive more, but this is still a fantastic film

Some beautiful shots but holy hell what a snore of a flick

Erice's slim filmography is one of contemporary film's greatest tragedies. A criminally underutilized talent, Erice managed to bring his special gift for the medium to create one masterpiece (Beehive) and El Sur, an 'incomplete' work that was impacted by funding problems yet remains another showcase for his unique talent. It's a poetic rumination on memory and the magical bond between parents and children that dispels in adulthood. The glowing imagery is warm and full of ineffeble feeling.

Erice has underwhelmed me so far but I do like this better than Beehive

I loved it, but I need another watch before I can put my feelings into words on this one.

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