Lorena's Epiphany

A Family Portrait: Los Borgia

September 19, 2009 at 3:19 pm 1 comment

I’ve become obsessed with Spanish movies lately. Thursday night I finished watching this one particular film called “Los Borgia”. It was a looonnng one, so I watched it in 3 digestible parts.

The film was released three years ago, but I hadn’t heard of it before. The cover of the DVD is what drew me in. The film was very intense, but I loved it. The acting, costumes, scenery – even the fighting – had a rawness that seemed to capture the mood of the time.

It’s no easy feat creating an almost heart-warming portrait of such a historically despised family. The Borgia family were known for their reign of corruption and terror at the Vatican from 1492-1503. We all think our families are messed up in some way or another, but that’s nothing compared to the truly scandalous lives of the Borgias.

The film starts by introducing us to the Spanish-born Borgia brothers – ambitious Cesar (Sergio Peris-Mencheta), wild boy Juan (Sergio Múñiz) and insecure Jofre (Eloy Azorín). Their father, Rodrigo (Lluis Homar), has just been appointed pope of Rome and immediately marries off his children to expand the Vatican’s (and the Borgias’) interests.

His daughter, Lucrecia (Maria Valverde) is presented as the unwilling victim of her father who is married off to the Borgias’ rival family. Jealousy among the brothers develops as Cesar, hungry for military glory, is disappointed to be named a cardinal, while Juan is made a captain in the army. The few glimpses of true love and vulnerability reveals the softer side of the power-hungry family.

Cesar was by far my favorite character in the film. I was also pleasantly surprised to see Paz Vega, from the film Spanglish, acting as the relentlessly proud Caterina Sforza.

Watch it.. and then go to a Renaissance fair to really live it up!

Entry filed under: Floating. Tags: Cesar, corruption, film, Jofre, Juan, legend, Los Borgia, Lucrecia, Pope, Rome, scandalous, the Vatican.