Goya's Ghosts
Encyclopedia
Goya's Ghosts is a 2006 Spanish
/American
film directed by Miloš Forman
, and produced by Xuxa Producciones (Spain) and by Saul Zaentz
, and written by Miloš Forman and Jean-Claude Carrière
. The film stars Natalie Portman
, Javier Bardem
, and Stellan Skarsgård
, and was filmed on location in Spain
during late 2005. The film was written, produced, and performed in English although it is a Spanish production.
Although the historical setting of the movie is authentic, the story itself is fictional.
Director Forman stated, "There was no film ever made about this particular [historical] period." He may be referring to the invasion of Spain specifically, as there are certainly other films about the Peninsular War
(e.g. The Pride and the Passion
).
reels amid the turmoil and upheaval of the French Revolution
. Francisco Goya
(Stellan Skarsgård
) is a renowned painter, who, among others, does portraits for the royal family as the Official Court Painter to the King and Queen.
The Spanish Inquisition
is disturbed by part of Goya's work. Brother Lorenzo (Javier Bardem
) is hiring Goya to paint a portrait
and defends him, saying that his works are not evil, they just show evil. He recommends the Church step up the fight against anti-Catholic
practices. He requests and is put in charge of intensifying the Inquisition.
When posing in Goya's studio, Lorenzo asks Goya about a young model he uses, Ines (Natalie Portman
), daughter of a rich merchant, Tomas Bilbatua (Jose Luis Gomez
). Inés is spotted by Inquisition spies (trained by Lorenzo) declining a dish of pork in a tavern. The Holy Office of the Inquisition orders Inés to come to the Office. There she is arrested and accused of "judaizing", i.e. spreading Jewish rituals, because she did not eat pork the other evening. She is stripped naked and torture
d by strappado
("put to The Question"), confesses, and is imprisoned.
Tomas begs Goya for help, who in turn asks Lorenzo to find out about Ines' situation. Lorenzo visits Ines in prison telling her that he is about to help her. He offers to pray with her but instead seduces her. At a dinner in Tomas' home, where he and Goya are guests, Lorenzo defends "The Question": he argues that if the accused is really innocent, God will give him or her the strength to deny guilt, so a person who confesses must be guilty. Tomas does not agree: he argues that people will confess to anything under torture, and Goya agrees. To prove this Tomas draws up a statement which says that Lorenzo confesses to being a monkey, and, with the help of his sons, does not let Lorenzo leave unless he agrees to sign it. Goya pleads for Lorenzo without success; Goya is allowed to leave and does. They torture Lorenzo and he signs. Tomas promises to destroy the document after Ines is released. He gives Lorenzo a large amount of gold for the Church, hoping it will persuade the Holy Office to consider leniency.
Lorenzo pleads for Ines, but the Inquisitor General Father Gregorio, while accepting the money, refuses, since Ines has confessed. Lorenzo again visits Ines in prison and, offering to pray with her, seduces her again. Tomás brings the document to the king, Carlos IV
(Randy Quaid
). Lorenzo is now an embarrassment to the Spanish Church and is banished. He flees. Lorenzo's portrait is confiscated by the Church, and is set on fire in public.
Fifteen years pass, and Goya is at the height of his creativity, but he has become deaf. The French army under Napoleon invades Spain, abolishes the Inquisition and sets the prisoners free. Lorenzo becomes Napoleon's chief prosecutor against his former Spanish allies. (This twist in Lorenzo's allegiance might have been inspired by the career of Juan Antonio Llorente
.) Inés, who was said to be tried, has actually been left to perish in the dungeons until now. She has given birth to a daughter in prison, and, upon visiting her old home and finding her family dead, turns to Goya for help in finding her child, who was taken away from her immediately after birth. Lorenzo is the father, which is embarrassing for him, and he sends Ines, whose sanity has suffered in prison, to an asylum
. Lorenzo searches for their daughter in an orphanage, and he learns from the nuns her name is Alicia. She had run away from the orphanage a few years before.
In Garden Park, Goya finds a prostitute named Alicia (also played by Natalie Portman
) who looks identical to Ines. He goes to Lorenzo asking for Ines so he can reunite her with her daughter. Lorenzo goes to see Alicia, asking her to leave Spain for America, but she refuses the offer. Goya finds Ines, and bribes the manager of an asylum to release her. Lorenzo arrests a group of prostitutes in an inn, including Alicia, to deport them to America. Later, Ines finds an abandoned baby left by one of the prostitutes and in her delusion believes the baby to be her own lost daughter.
The British conquer the French troops. Lorenzo is arrested as he is fleeing. The Spanish reinstate the Inquisition, which sentences Lorenzo to death. Church officials are willing to pardon him if he repents, and they urge Lorenzo to do so until the last moment at the site of the execution in the city center. At the site of the execution Lorenzo spots his daughter Alicia, on the arm of a British officer, scoffing at him. He also notices Goya sitting at a distance sketching the entire ordeal. Ines is also present in the crowd and calls to Lorenzo enthusiastically to show him the baby she believes is their daughter. Refusing to repent, Lorenzo, donning a dunce cap
, is garrotted. The film ends with a cart taking Lorenzo's body away, escorted by Ines, holding the hand of the dead Lorenzo, children prancing about singing songs, and with Goya following closely behind her.
are also fictional. This part of the life of Francisco Goya
is made up.
reported that 29% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 82 reviews — with the consensus that "ornate costumes and a talented cast can't make up for Ghosts' glacial pace and confused plot." Metacritic
reported the film had an average score of 52 out of 100, based on 25 reviews — indicating average reviews.
and $1,199,024 in Italy
. In the United States
, Goya's Ghosts has grossed $1,000,626, with a worldwide total $9,448,082.
Cinema of Spain
The art of motion-picture making within the nation of Spain or by Spanish filmmakers abroad is collectively known as Spanish Cinema.In recent years, Spanish cinema has achieved high marks of recognition as a result of its creative and technical excellence...
/American
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
film directed by Miloš Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...
, and produced by Xuxa Producciones (Spain) and by Saul Zaentz
Saul Zaentz
Saul Zaentz is an American film producer and former record company executive. He has won the Academy Award for Best Picture three times and in 1996 was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award....
, and written by Miloš Forman and Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière is a screenwriter and actor. Alumnus of the École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud, he was a frequent collaborator with Luis Buñuel...
. The film stars Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman
Natalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
, Javier Bardem
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem is a Spanish actor. In 2007 he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as sociopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, and has also garnered critical acclaim for roles in films such as Jamón, jamón, Carne trémula, Boca a boca, Los...
, and Stellan Skarsgård
Stellan Skarsgård
Stellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...
, and was filmed on location in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
during late 2005. The film was written, produced, and performed in English although it is a Spanish production.
Although the historical setting of the movie is authentic, the story itself is fictional.
Director Forman stated, "There was no film ever made about this particular [historical] period." He may be referring to the invasion of Spain specifically, as there are certainly other films about the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
(e.g. The Pride and the Passion
The Pride and the Passion
The Pride and the Passion is a historical film drama starring Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Sophia Loren made by Stanley Kramer Productions. Set in the Napoleonic era, it is the story of a British officer who has orders to retrieve a huge cannon from Spain and take it to the British forces by ship...
).
Plot
In 1792, SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
reels amid the turmoil and upheaval of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
(Stellan Skarsgård
Stellan Skarsgård
Stellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...
) is a renowned painter, who, among others, does portraits for the royal family as the Official Court Painter to the King and Queen.
The Spanish Inquisition
Spanish Inquisition
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition , commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition , was a tribunal established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, and to replace the Medieval...
is disturbed by part of Goya's work. Brother Lorenzo (Javier Bardem
Javier Bardem
Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem is a Spanish actor. In 2007 he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as sociopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, and has also garnered critical acclaim for roles in films such as Jamón, jamón, Carne trémula, Boca a boca, Los...
) is hiring Goya to paint a portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
and defends him, saying that his works are not evil, they just show evil. He recommends the Church step up the fight against anti-Catholic
Anti-Catholicism
Anti-Catholicism is a generic term for discrimination, hostility or prejudice directed against Catholicism, and especially against the Catholic Church, its clergy or its adherents...
practices. He requests and is put in charge of intensifying the Inquisition.
When posing in Goya's studio, Lorenzo asks Goya about a young model he uses, Ines (Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman
Natalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
), daughter of a rich merchant, Tomas Bilbatua (Jose Luis Gomez
José Luis Gómez
José Luis Gómez García is a Spanish film actor. He has appeared in 33 films since 1968. At the 1976 Cannes Film Festival, he won the award for Best Actor in the film Pascual Duarte.-Selected filmography:* Pascual Duarte...
). Inés is spotted by Inquisition spies (trained by Lorenzo) declining a dish of pork in a tavern. The Holy Office of the Inquisition orders Inés to come to the Office. There she is arrested and accused of "judaizing", i.e. spreading Jewish rituals, because she did not eat pork the other evening. She is stripped naked and torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d by strappado
Strappado
Strappado is a form of torture in which the victim's hands are first tied behind their back and suspended in the air by means of a rope attached to wrists, which most likely dislocates both arms...
("put to The Question"), confesses, and is imprisoned.
Tomas begs Goya for help, who in turn asks Lorenzo to find out about Ines' situation. Lorenzo visits Ines in prison telling her that he is about to help her. He offers to pray with her but instead seduces her. At a dinner in Tomas' home, where he and Goya are guests, Lorenzo defends "The Question": he argues that if the accused is really innocent, God will give him or her the strength to deny guilt, so a person who confesses must be guilty. Tomas does not agree: he argues that people will confess to anything under torture, and Goya agrees. To prove this Tomas draws up a statement which says that Lorenzo confesses to being a monkey, and, with the help of his sons, does not let Lorenzo leave unless he agrees to sign it. Goya pleads for Lorenzo without success; Goya is allowed to leave and does. They torture Lorenzo and he signs. Tomas promises to destroy the document after Ines is released. He gives Lorenzo a large amount of gold for the Church, hoping it will persuade the Holy Office to consider leniency.
Lorenzo pleads for Ines, but the Inquisitor General Father Gregorio, while accepting the money, refuses, since Ines has confessed. Lorenzo again visits Ines in prison and, offering to pray with her, seduces her again. Tomás brings the document to the king, Carlos IV
Charles IV of Spain
Charles IV was King of Spain from 14 December 1788 until his abdication on 19 March 1808.-Early life:...
(Randy Quaid
Randy Quaid
Randall Rudy "Randy" Quaid is an American actor perhaps best known for his role as Cousin Eddie in the National Lampoon's Vacation movies, as well as his numerous supporting roles in films, including his Oscar nominated performance in The Last Detail, Independence Day, Kingpin and Brokeback Mountain...
). Lorenzo is now an embarrassment to the Spanish Church and is banished. He flees. Lorenzo's portrait is confiscated by the Church, and is set on fire in public.
Fifteen years pass, and Goya is at the height of his creativity, but he has become deaf. The French army under Napoleon invades Spain, abolishes the Inquisition and sets the prisoners free. Lorenzo becomes Napoleon's chief prosecutor against his former Spanish allies. (This twist in Lorenzo's allegiance might have been inspired by the career of Juan Antonio Llorente
Juan Antonio Llorente
Juan Antonio Llorente was a Spanish historian and liberal activist....
.) Inés, who was said to be tried, has actually been left to perish in the dungeons until now. She has given birth to a daughter in prison, and, upon visiting her old home and finding her family dead, turns to Goya for help in finding her child, who was taken away from her immediately after birth. Lorenzo is the father, which is embarrassing for him, and he sends Ines, whose sanity has suffered in prison, to an asylum
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
. Lorenzo searches for their daughter in an orphanage, and he learns from the nuns her name is Alicia. She had run away from the orphanage a few years before.
In Garden Park, Goya finds a prostitute named Alicia (also played by Natalie Portman
Natalie Portman
Natalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
) who looks identical to Ines. He goes to Lorenzo asking for Ines so he can reunite her with her daughter. Lorenzo goes to see Alicia, asking her to leave Spain for America, but she refuses the offer. Goya finds Ines, and bribes the manager of an asylum to release her. Lorenzo arrests a group of prostitutes in an inn, including Alicia, to deport them to America. Later, Ines finds an abandoned baby left by one of the prostitutes and in her delusion believes the baby to be her own lost daughter.
The British conquer the French troops. Lorenzo is arrested as he is fleeing. The Spanish reinstate the Inquisition, which sentences Lorenzo to death. Church officials are willing to pardon him if he repents, and they urge Lorenzo to do so until the last moment at the site of the execution in the city center. At the site of the execution Lorenzo spots his daughter Alicia, on the arm of a British officer, scoffing at him. He also notices Goya sitting at a distance sketching the entire ordeal. Ines is also present in the crowd and calls to Lorenzo enthusiastically to show him the baby she believes is their daughter. Refusing to repent, Lorenzo, donning a dunce cap
Dunce cap
A dunce cap, also variously known as a dunce hat, dunce's cap, or dunce's hat, is a pointed hat. In popular culture, it is typically made of paper and often marked with a D or the word "dunce", and given to schoolchildren to wear as punishment by public humiliation for misbehavior and, as the name...
, is garrotted. The film ends with a cart taking Lorenzo's body away, escorted by Ines, holding the hand of the dead Lorenzo, children prancing about singing songs, and with Goya following closely behind her.
Cast
- Natalie PortmanNatalie PortmanNatalie Hershlag , better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but major success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel...
as Ines/Alicia - Javier BardemJavier BardemJavier Ángel Encinas Bardem is a Spanish actor. In 2007 he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as sociopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, and has also garnered critical acclaim for roles in films such as Jamón, jamón, Carne trémula, Boca a boca, Los...
as Lorenzo - Stellan SkarsgårdStellan SkarsgårdStellan John Skarsgård is a Swedish actor, known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist,...
as Francisco GoyaFrancisco GoyaFrancisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era... - Randy QuaidRandy QuaidRandall Rudy "Randy" Quaid is an American actor perhaps best known for his role as Cousin Eddie in the National Lampoon's Vacation movies, as well as his numerous supporting roles in films, including his Oscar nominated performance in The Last Detail, Independence Day, Kingpin and Brokeback Mountain...
as King Carlos IVCharles IV of SpainCharles IV was King of Spain from 14 December 1788 until his abdication on 19 March 1808.-Early life:... - Unax UgaldeUnax UgaldeUnax Ugalde Gutiérrez is a Spanish actor born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, in the Basque Country.-Biography:Unax Ugalde, son of a worker at the Altos Hornos and a housewife, was born in 1978 in Vitoria-Gasteiz. While, as a student, he ambitioned to become a marine scientist, started taking classes...
as Angel Bilbatua - Michael LonsdaleMichael LonsdaleMichael Lonsdale , sometimes billed as Michel Lonsdale, is a French actor who has appeared in over 180 films and television shows....
as Father Gregorio - Julian WadhamJulian Wadham-Career:He has appeared on television as both Charles II and George V...
as Joseph BonaparteJoseph BonaparteJoseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
Fiction
The story is fictional apart from the historical setting. Ines Bilbatua and Brother Lorenzo are fictional characters. Thus their relationships with Francisco GoyaFrancisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
are also fictional. This part of the life of Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
is made up.
Critical reception
Goya's Ghosts received poor reviews from critics. The review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 29% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 82 reviews — with the consensus that "ornate costumes and a talented cast can't make up for Ghosts' glacial pace and confused plot." Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
reported the film had an average score of 52 out of 100, based on 25 reviews — indicating average reviews.
Box office performance
The film has grossed $2,198,929 in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and $1,199,024 in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Goya's Ghosts has grossed $1,000,626, with a worldwide total $9,448,082.
External links
- Official website
- Hanway Films webpage
- "Liberty, Equality and Torture," in Willamette Week By N.P. Thompson
- Photos at natalieportman.com