The British Film Institute has officially announced and detailed its upcoming Dual Format Edition of acclaimed Spanish director Carlos Saura's Cría Cuervos (1976), starring Geraldine Chaplin, Mónica Randall, Florinda Chico, and Ana Torrent. The release will be available for purchase on May 27th.
One of cinema's most hauntingly vivid depictions of a child's fantasy-imbued reality, Cría cuervos is a darkly unsettling and deeply touching film which stands as a landmark of Spanish cinema.
Eight-year-old Ana (the spellbinding Ana Torrent from The Spirit of the Beehive) lives in a mysterious mansion in central Madrid, cut off from the roaring traffic and urban bustle by a high-walled garden. Recently orphaned, she believes herself to have poisoned her cold, authoritarian father (Héctor Alterio), a high-ranking military man whom she blames for the death of her much adored, musically gifted mother (Geraldine Chaplin in a performance of exquisite tenderness). Now cared for, along with her two sisters, by her uptight, scolding Aunt Paulina (Mónica Randall), Ana has ample opportunity to observe the frustrations – emotional, sexual, and professional – of her adult female relatives. This is a world of secrets and lies in which only the family maid Rosa (Florinda Chico) will respond frankly to questions about sex or the Spanish Civil War.
Cría cuervos was nominated for a Golden Globe and won the Grand Prize at Cannes in 1977. It enjoyed a highly successful BFI theatrical release in June 2011 when it received 5 star reviews.
Special Features:
Presented in both High Definition and Standard Definition
Portrait of Carlos Saura (José Luis López-Linares, 2004, 63 mins, DVD only)
On-stage interview with Carlos Saura (2012, 23 mins, DVD only)
Optional alternative English language soundtrack
Original theatrical trailers
Illustrated booklet featuring new essays and notes from Maria Delgado, Mar Diestro-Dópido and Michael Brooke