The Grandfather (1999)

This film is about an old aristocrat who returns to his hometown in northern Spain to find out who his real granddaughter is, to define an heir.(he has two granddaughters one of which is an illegitimate child). He loves both of them, but becomes more greatly attached to the older child (Dolly) who he feels is the image of his late wife.When he finds out that Dolly is not his granddaughter; he is unhappy, and considers suicide; The girl's mother is in the process of taking them to live with her in Madrid, but Dolly wants to stay in town to take care of her grandfather.Almost at the point of jumping to his death, Dolly arrives at the scene and the grandfather realizes that although she is not in his bloodline, he loves her very much and decides to stay and live with her and a friend.

This in a movie version of Perez Galdos's novel . I mean you got to understand the historical context where it happens. There are several reasons to watch this movie. The first rate performance of the Spanish actor Fernando Fernan Gomez (actor,writer, theater director, drama writer,etc.), a national treasure . His performance in this movie won a Goya ( the Spanish's academy awards ) . The 2 performances offered by Fernan Gomez in "El Abuelo" and "La lengua de las mariposas " can be counted among the best in recent years .This actor is admired by Banderas,Bardem ,etc. Then we have Rafael Alonso as El Abuelo's friend .Another magnificent actor .All the cast really is very well chosen. Garci direct the movie with a strong hand , caring a lot about the acting . If only for the performances it will be worth to spend your time watching this movie and remember the story was devised by one of the best universal writers ever . Your own university will tell you that...

This charming, sensitive and often times hilarious comedy of manners is one of the best movies I've seen in years. It's long (147 minutes) and engrossing with many subplots and twists. A foreign film from Spain, it has no actors which will be readily recognizable to the American audience, and that alone builds interest and suspense, because we never really know who is going to what to whom and how it is all going to turn out.This is a rather talky film and takes patience to read the subtitles but it's well worth it. Beautifully shot in the Spanish countryside. Not to be missed by the discerning film enthusiast. 10 out of 10. Don't miss it.

My immediate impression after seeing this film for the first time (and any really good film needs to be seen at least twice) was that at last here was another little masterpiece to add to the very limited cinematographical treasure troves produced by Spain in the last quarter of a century. 'El Abuelo' stands very well alongside `El Sur' (1982) and `Los Santos Inocentes' (1984), these two also being adapted from novels. I cannot help thinking that Garci is at his best when with the help of Valcárcel he adapts a story from real Spanish literature. As perhaps the most prestigious and prize-winning Spanish director (we shall pass over Almodóvar and his commercially orientated light entertainment), having won at Hollywood, Montreal, and Spain's own Goya prize several times, he has produced some memorable films and TV series (Historias del Otro Lado - Stories from the Other Side), mostly because he has that acute eye for capturing every detail as he shoots his scenes. He knows how to use his actors, and never better than in `El Abuelo'. The leading actors bring sincere interpretations, full of feeling, adding beauty to the situations being developed. The film is also a little tribute to Rafael Alonso, who died without seeing the finished film: his life ended with the hugely memorable part of an unpresuming private home teacher to the two little girls - Dolly and Nelly - one of whom is not really Don Rodrigo's granddaughter. Fernán Gómez is of course perfect, as he has been in most of his films in recent years, and Agustín González has at last played his best rôle in the whole of his acting career. Don Rodrigo returns from the Americas where he lost a fortune, to find out which of the two girls was due to his daughter-in-law's unfaithfulness. The novel itself is `costumbrista' as is also the novel by Concha Espina, `El Junco', which deals with a similar situation. Manuel Balboa once again has been exquisite in choosing his music and I must mention the sumptuous photography by Raúl Pérez Cubero, beautifully, lovingly captured in the countryside and around the grand old house, worth any prizes that may be floating around out there.....But I do not believe in prizes: they mostly exist only to perpetuate themselves. `El Abuelo' does not need any prizes - it stands up on its own merits: simply a wonderful film telling a story with simplicity and feeling.