Cecilia

1981 melodrama from Humberto Solas
One gets the impression that Solas would rather do without establishing shots; not that he doesn't use them, but there is always the wish to go straight in to the face, often framed hapzardly (not a negative evaluation), as quickly as possible. This is straightforward affect-images, creating space (if any created) off of these, which is fine, his way of filmmaking. Combined with some distance tracking, and objects often coming in between us and the action, various rackings of focus, it is slightly reminiscent of Bertolucci.
The most immediately apparent feature here is the make-up; pale as death, partly down to the period, partly to do with the bourgeois who look like they are to be heroised at times, but are of course ultimately dead inside. Combined with high keylighting, with the key light really shining out, we have a reflective look that brings out all the crevices of the complexions.
The narratives run on two strands, neither particularly quickly. Along with our central slow-moving melodrama we have our politicial tale, which is rather confusingly told, though does allow some nice lines. The main melodrama really cranks it up at the end, and frankly the piece does fall apart a little, trying to connect the lines. It really becomes very overheated, with some very of-its-time dramatic stylisation. The end, where the fatal love, the gothic romance, comes to the fore, seems to be what Solas would really have liked to have done all along and is, of course, completely ridiculous. But there you go.