This is a Spanish film which portrays some key events in Spanish
history from the 1570s, when Spain was positioned to control the seas and
the New World. The Spanish had just defeated the Turks at the naval battle
of Lepanto, and were turning their attention to the only other remaining
naval super power, England. The rival between the Spanish and English
monarchs was particularly vituperative in that period, because Phillip of
Spain had once been married to Mary, the half-sister of Elizabeth of
England, back when Mary was actually the English queen. In theory, this
union was to unite the two kingdoms, and Philip was even awarded the title
of King of England by Parliament. Sort of. He was not a regnant king, but
the husband of a regnant queen - the same position held today by Prince
Phillip, but with a different title. When Mary died, Philip of Spain lost
all claims to English titles, as per their marriage contract, but he was
not one to give up easily. He soon offered to marry Elizabeth! That didn't
work out for religious reasons (Elizabeth was Protestant), and the two of
them continued to maneuver against one another for years. Elizabeth
aligned herself with Protestant dissidents in The Netherlands, which was
then under Spanish dominion, while Philip countered by aligning himself
with Catholic dissidents in England and Ireland who hoped to overthrow
Elizabeth and replace her with her Catholic cousin, Mary Stuart, "Queen of
Scots." When Mary Stuart's execution in 1587 ended Philip's crusade for an
internal conquest of England, he started scheming to prepare an outright
invasion. You have probably read about the defeat of the Spanish Armada in
1588, but that was by no means the end of Spain's ambitions in Britain.
England and Spain remained at war for another fifteen years, until both of
their famous sovereigns were dead. Philip II, who was certainly not
lacking in ambition, also remained constantly at war with France and with
patriotic Dutch factions in The Netherlands.
The
El Escorial of the title is the glorious residential palace Philip
built near Madrid, supposedly based on the floor plan of The Temple of
Solomon, as described by Josephus Flavius, a famous Roman/Jewish historian
who lived shortly after the time of Jesus. In the title of this film, the
building metaphorically represents the court of Phillip, with all of its
pomp and intrigues. The film is about one such intrigue involving two
scheming nobles who conspired to prevent the Spanish army from properly
defending Spanish interests in The Netherlands. They were motivated to do
so because Dutch victories would have been good for their own personal
fortunes.
The film is magnificent in appearance. Much of it was filmed at the
spectacular Escorial itself, which is still in excellent condition. Indoor
scenes picture elegantly costumed courtiers, gilded halls and chapels, and
various luxurious quarters. The exterior camera shots picture lavish royal
coaches parting the crowds, or linger in exquisitely manicured courtyards
filled with ornate fountains. The action scenes feature the requisite
flashing blades, with lithe swordsmen leaping through crowds and toppling
fruit stands.
Usual stuff.
The film received several Goya nominations relating to visual splendor:
Makeup and Hair, Cinematography, Art Direction, and Costume Design.
Unfortunately, a beautiful appearance and a strong international cast are
about the film's only strengths. The actual historical events, which could
make for a great film on their own, often play second fiddle behind an
unbelievable and trite May/December love story, which seems to serve no
purpose other than to make work for the director's daughter. When the
film does get down to business, far too many scenes seem to consist of
beady-eyed men stroking their facial hair menacingly and droning away ad
infinitum with verbose and stilted dialogue which seems to have been
written by Basil Exposition from those Austin Powers movies. Despite the
near-narrative dialogue, the story can be difficult to follow at times
because of some odd editing decisions.
There are two versions of the film, one in English, one in Spanish.
