In 1931, a young soldier deserts from the army and falls into a country farm, where he is welcomed by the owner due to his political ideas. Manolo has four daughters, Fernando likes all of them and they like him, so he has to decide which one to love.
Acting
Penélope Cruz's Luz — chaotic, luminous, steals every frame she's in.
Cinematography
Golden-hour Spain so gorgeous it should be illegal.
Writing
Witty dialogue treats politics and lust with equal irreverence.
Director
Fernando Trueba
Penélope Cruz
Luz
Miriam Díaz-Aroca
Clara
Gabino Diego
Juanito
Fernando Fernán Gómez
Manolo
Michel Galabru
Danglard
Ariadna Gil
Violeta
Agustín González
Don Luis
Chus Lampreave
Doña Asun
Mary Carmen Ramírez
Amalia
Jorge Sanz
Fernando
Maribel Verdú
Rocío
Juan José Otegui
El cabo
Jesús Bonilla
El número
María Galiana
La Polonia
Joan Potau
Paco
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Trueba beat Jane Campion's The Piano for the Foreign Language Oscar, a choice that aged like milk in some circles.
Made just before Spain's 1992 Olympic glow-up, it mythologizes a pre-Civil War innocence that never really existed — nostalgia as political escape hatch.
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