#35 - Cria Cuervos (Raise Ravens) (1975) Review

Cria Cuervos (Raise Ravens) (1975), Spain, Carlos Saura
4/5

This film is beautifully performed and shot. It is centred around the memories and experiences of Ana as a child after her parents deaths. The exquisite slow moving camera shots, with slow close ups emphasise Ana's perspective. The minimal dialogue draw focus onto the haunting performances particularly of Ana Torrent who plays Ana. The lack of dialogue and focus on imagery and transitions between memory, fantasy and reality that are interwoven in-shot give a sense of fragmentation and merging between reality and fantasy. Thus emphasising the elusive and distorted nature of memory itself. The themes of the film are quite dark, surrounding issues of death, grief and unhappiness all set to the backdrop to a time of political and cultural change in the history of Spain.

Ana Torrent as Ana

The use of music is sparing and the haunting slow cinematography shot to silence emphasises sound when it occurs and also music when it is used. The music used in the film is beautiful and complements the mood and subject matter. The film predominantly uses diegetic (in-film) music such as the mother playing the song on the piano, which is later used as score (non-diegetic music i.e. external to the world of the film) in other sections of the film. The use of the song "Por que te vas" performed by Jeanette is repeated throughout the film and the up-beat tone belies the melancholy subject matter of the lyrics. For example "All my love promises will be gone with you" and "Because you are leaving".

Ana listening to "Por que te vas"

Geraldine Chaplin as "Old Ana"

The focus on Ana's experience and memory shifting from childhood memory and adult memories, intercut with interview like style dialogue by "old Ana" played by Geraldine Chaplin (who also plays her mother in the film) is unusual and draws attention to the changing nature of memory itself. Geraldine Chaplin gives a great performance, but the children especially Ana are the real stand outs. The intense focalisation of childhood perspective particularly of such "adult" issues as grief and death is quite unusual and much of the content in the film was deemed controversial at the time. The film through Ana challenges many social, political and religious issues through the experiences of a child coming to terms with the death of her parents. The film also offers an alternate perspective to the view that childhood is innocent and enjoyable. Overall the pacing of the film is very slow, but the beautiful cinematography and performances convey a powerful message and story that is still highly relevant and relatable while also capturing a snapshot of 1970s Spanish political history.