Juana la Loca (2001 film)
Encyclopedia
Mad Love is a 2001
period drama film
written and directed by Vicente Aranda
starring Pilar López de Ayala
and Daniele Liotti. The plot follows the tragic fate of Queen Joanna of Castile
madly in love to an unfaithful husband, Philip the Handsome
, Archduke of Austria.
The film received 3 Goya awards, in the categories of Best Actress, Best Wardrobe, and Best Makeup and Hair.
, 1554. Seventy four years old, Queen Joanna of Castile, called Juana La Loca (Joanna the Mad), is still mourning the loss of her husband who died a half century before. Joanna remembers with emotion the man she loved passionately, but who brought her ruin. She does not fear death, she says, because death would allow her to be reunited with her husband. Their story goes back almost 60 years.
In 1496, Joanna, the third daughter of the Catholic Monarchs
Ferdinand II of Aragon
and Isabella I of Castile
, is leaving Spain through the port of Laredo
. She is headed to Flanders
to marry the Archduke of Austria, Felipe, nicknamed the Handsome, a man she has never laid eyes on. The marriage has been arranged for political purposes. Joanna's siblings and her mother Isabella bid her farewell.
Once in Flanders, Joanna, young and inexperienced, is immediately smitten by her handsome fiancé. He is equally pleased with his beautiful bride and orders the marriage to take place at that very moment so they can consummate their marriage without any delay. Their union is initially a great success. The political alliance between their two countries has been consolidated and Joanna and Philip are very attracted to each other. With his good looks and bed manners, Philip completely captives his wife. Their passionate love making soon produces results. Joanna has a daughter, followed shortly after by a son. Joanna gives birth to her son in an emergency bathroom delivery without any assistance cutting the umbilical afterwards with her teeth.
A combination of love, lust and emotional dependency, make the passionate Joanna deeply attached to her husband. Her love becomes consuming, but the intensity of her passion turns Felipe away. He is a restless man who finds entertainment in going hunting and in the arms of other women. The deaths of Joanna's brother, the stilbirth of her brother's daughter, her older sister's death and her sister's son's death unexpectedly make her heir of the Castilian and Aragones crowns. However, she is not interested in government. Obsessed with her husband, Joanna surprises him in bed with a lover who Joanna later successfully identifies as Ines de Brabante, one of the court ladies. In a fit of jealousy, Joanna cuts the long red hair of her rival. While Joanna despairs with her husband’s unfaithfulness, she receives further bad news. Her mother has died. Joanna thus becomes Queen of Castile and has to return to her kingdom. Her tantrums over her husband’s infidelities have made her starting to be known as Joanna the Mad.
At the Castilian court in Burgos, the Queen is happily greeted by her subjects, but her marital life is still in turmoil. Philip is soon bewitched by the charms and spells of Aixa, a Moorish prostitute who uses her sexual attraction and black magic to secure Philip's favor. With this new lover, the King becomes noticeably indifferent toward his wife which adds to her increasingly insane jealously.
Against the background of this troubled marriage, there are two opposed political parties at court: one Flemish, the other, Castilian. The conspiring Flemish usurpers are headed by Señor de Veyre, Philip's right hand man. Their objective is to have Joanna declared insane and that Philip takes the power away from her. Joanna has her own set of supporters, the loyal Castilian royalists headed by the Admiral of Castile. The Admiral and the Queen's friend and confidant, Elvira, try unsuccessfully to rescue Juana from her marital obsessions.
However it is not the government that is on the Queen's mind; she is fixated on retaining her husband’s love. To avoid any temptations at court, she hires only ugly looking maids of honor to serve her, but in fact Aixa has been brought to court by Philip passing as one of the court ladies under the name of Beatriz de Bobadilla. Unaware of this, the Queen relies on Beatriz to find a spell that helps her retain her husband's love. Joanna is equally misguided in her attempt to regain Philip's attention by simulating a love affair with Captain Álvaro de Estúñiga, a close friend from her childhood. The Queen’s lack of control permits the manipulation of her enemies to have her declared incompetent to rule. The King, encouraged by Señor de Veyre, resolves to take the rule of the kingdom only for himself and shove Joanna out of the way. He finds an unlikely ally in Joanna's own father king Fernando, who has remarried and has no further interest in either the fate of his daughter or in the kingdom of Castile.
While her fate is decided at a court assembly, Joanna is able to successfully take her case counting on the unquestionable support of her subjects. However, her powerful speech coincides with Philip falling gravely ill. Although she devotedly takes care of her husband, the doctors are unable to do anything for him. On his death bed, Philip apologizes to his wife for his past excesses. After the death of her husband Joanna, heavily pregnant, takes on a long journey to the south of the country to bury her husband. She does not go too far. Forced to stop to give birth to a stillborn daughter, Joanna never reaches her destination. Although she retained her title as queen, at the age of 28 she was locked as a mad woman in the castle of Tordesillas for the rest of her long life. Philip's body was laid to rest in a nearby monastery, which Joanna was allowed to visit from time to time.
(1829–1898) that inspired a previous film with the same subject.
Juana La Loca was shot in historical castles and places in Sigüenza
, Talamanca de Jarama
, the Monastery of Las Huelgas in Burgos
, and Guimarães
in Portugal
, among other carefully chosen spots. The music for the film was composed by José Nieto
, who took inspiration in the Burgos school of organists, such as Antonio de Cabezón
, and La Folia Española
, Luis de Milán
, important 16th century composer.
The film Juana La Loca ran into several problems even before it was released to the public. The Italian co-producers changed certain parts of the film for the Italian premier, and Aranda had to threaten them with law suits. However, the version released in Spain and the USA was the original, as Aranda conceived it. The film was Spanish entry of that year to the Academy Awards
. It was picked up by Sony pictures and was distributed in the USA retitling the film in the American market as Mad Love instead of the more appropriate "Joanna The Mad". The same name had already been used by Mad Love
, a film starring Drew Barrymore
and Chris O'Donnell
in 1995.
in the U.S.A. on January 21, 2003. The film is in Spanish
with English
subtitles.
period drama film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
written and directed by Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
starring Pilar López de Ayala
Pilar López de Ayala
Pilar López de Ayala Arroyo is a Spanish film actress. She received a Goya for her role as Queen Joanna of Castile in the 2001 film Juana la Loca, directed by Vicente Aranda ....
and Daniele Liotti. The plot follows the tragic fate of Queen Joanna of Castile
Joanna of Castile
Joanna , nicknamed Joanna the Mad , was the first queen regnant to reign over both the Crown of Castile and the Crown of Aragon , a union which evolved into modern Spain...
madly in love to an unfaithful husband, Philip the Handsome
Philip I of Castile
Philip I , known as Philip the Handsome or the Fair, was the first Habsburg King of Castile...
, Archduke of Austria.
The film received 3 Goya awards, in the categories of Best Actress, Best Wardrobe, and Best Makeup and Hair.
Plot
TordesillasTordesillas
Tordesillas is a town and municipality in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, central Spain.It is located 25 km southwest of the provincial capital, Valladolid at an elevation of 704 meters. The population was c. 9,000 in 2009....
, 1554. Seventy four years old, Queen Joanna of Castile, called Juana La Loca (Joanna the Mad), is still mourning the loss of her husband who died a half century before. Joanna remembers with emotion the man she loved passionately, but who brought her ruin. She does not fear death, she says, because death would allow her to be reunited with her husband. Their story goes back almost 60 years.
In 1496, Joanna, the third daughter of the Catholic Monarchs
Catholic Monarchs
The Catholic Monarchs is the collective title used in history for Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being both descended from John I of Castile; they were given a papal dispensation to deal with...
Ferdinand II of Aragon
Ferdinand II of Aragon
Ferdinand the Catholic was King of Aragon , Sicily , Naples , Valencia, Sardinia, and Navarre, Count of Barcelona, jure uxoris King of Castile and then regent of that country also from 1508 to his death, in the name of...
and Isabella I of Castile
Isabella I of Castile
Isabella I was Queen of Castile and León. She and her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to both kingdoms that became the basis for the unification of Spain. Later the two laid the foundations for the political unification of Spain under their grandson, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor...
, is leaving Spain through the port of Laredo
Laredo, Cantabria
Laredo is a town in the Northern Spanish province and autonomous community of Cantabria.Located between the cities of Santander and Bilbao, Laredo is known in the region and nationally for "La Salvé", its 5 km long beach and for the historic part of town dating back to Roman times...
. She is headed to Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
to marry the Archduke of Austria, Felipe, nicknamed the Handsome, a man she has never laid eyes on. The marriage has been arranged for political purposes. Joanna's siblings and her mother Isabella bid her farewell.
Once in Flanders, Joanna, young and inexperienced, is immediately smitten by her handsome fiancé. He is equally pleased with his beautiful bride and orders the marriage to take place at that very moment so they can consummate their marriage without any delay. Their union is initially a great success. The political alliance between their two countries has been consolidated and Joanna and Philip are very attracted to each other. With his good looks and bed manners, Philip completely captives his wife. Their passionate love making soon produces results. Joanna has a daughter, followed shortly after by a son. Joanna gives birth to her son in an emergency bathroom delivery without any assistance cutting the umbilical afterwards with her teeth.
A combination of love, lust and emotional dependency, make the passionate Joanna deeply attached to her husband. Her love becomes consuming, but the intensity of her passion turns Felipe away. He is a restless man who finds entertainment in going hunting and in the arms of other women. The deaths of Joanna's brother, the stilbirth of her brother's daughter, her older sister's death and her sister's son's death unexpectedly make her heir of the Castilian and Aragones crowns. However, she is not interested in government. Obsessed with her husband, Joanna surprises him in bed with a lover who Joanna later successfully identifies as Ines de Brabante, one of the court ladies. In a fit of jealousy, Joanna cuts the long red hair of her rival. While Joanna despairs with her husband’s unfaithfulness, she receives further bad news. Her mother has died. Joanna thus becomes Queen of Castile and has to return to her kingdom. Her tantrums over her husband’s infidelities have made her starting to be known as Joanna the Mad.
At the Castilian court in Burgos, the Queen is happily greeted by her subjects, but her marital life is still in turmoil. Philip is soon bewitched by the charms and spells of Aixa, a Moorish prostitute who uses her sexual attraction and black magic to secure Philip's favor. With this new lover, the King becomes noticeably indifferent toward his wife which adds to her increasingly insane jealously.
Against the background of this troubled marriage, there are two opposed political parties at court: one Flemish, the other, Castilian. The conspiring Flemish usurpers are headed by Señor de Veyre, Philip's right hand man. Their objective is to have Joanna declared insane and that Philip takes the power away from her. Joanna has her own set of supporters, the loyal Castilian royalists headed by the Admiral of Castile. The Admiral and the Queen's friend and confidant, Elvira, try unsuccessfully to rescue Juana from her marital obsessions.
However it is not the government that is on the Queen's mind; she is fixated on retaining her husband’s love. To avoid any temptations at court, she hires only ugly looking maids of honor to serve her, but in fact Aixa has been brought to court by Philip passing as one of the court ladies under the name of Beatriz de Bobadilla. Unaware of this, the Queen relies on Beatriz to find a spell that helps her retain her husband's love. Joanna is equally misguided in her attempt to regain Philip's attention by simulating a love affair with Captain Álvaro de Estúñiga, a close friend from her childhood. The Queen’s lack of control permits the manipulation of her enemies to have her declared incompetent to rule. The King, encouraged by Señor de Veyre, resolves to take the rule of the kingdom only for himself and shove Joanna out of the way. He finds an unlikely ally in Joanna's own father king Fernando, who has remarried and has no further interest in either the fate of his daughter or in the kingdom of Castile.
While her fate is decided at a court assembly, Joanna is able to successfully take her case counting on the unquestionable support of her subjects. However, her powerful speech coincides with Philip falling gravely ill. Although she devotedly takes care of her husband, the doctors are unable to do anything for him. On his death bed, Philip apologizes to his wife for his past excesses. After the death of her husband Joanna, heavily pregnant, takes on a long journey to the south of the country to bury her husband. She does not go too far. Forced to stop to give birth to a stillborn daughter, Joanna never reaches her destination. Although she retained her title as queen, at the age of 28 she was locked as a mad woman in the castle of Tordesillas for the rest of her long life. Philip's body was laid to rest in a nearby monastery, which Joanna was allowed to visit from time to time.
Cast
- Pilar López de AyalaPilar López de AyalaPilar López de Ayala Arroyo is a Spanish film actress. She received a Goya for her role as Queen Joanna of Castile in the 2001 film Juana la Loca, directed by Vicente Aranda ....
- Joanna of CastileJoanna of CastileJoanna , nicknamed Joanna the Mad , was the first queen regnant to reign over both the Crown of Castile and the Crown of Aragon , a union which evolved into modern Spain... - Daniele Liotti - Philip I of CastilePhilip I of CastilePhilip I , known as Philip the Handsome or the Fair, was the first Habsburg King of Castile...
- Rosana PastorRosana PastorRosana Pastor is a Spanish actress, best known for her role as Blanca in Land and Freedom. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the 2002 Goya Awards for her role in Juana la Loca.-External links:...
- Elvira - Manuela ArcuriManuela ArcuriManuela Arcuri is an Italian actress and model.-Biography:Raised in Latina, Italy from an early age, after high school she enrolled in the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica in Rome but she dropped out and enrolled in a 3-year sociology degree at the university...
- Aixa/Beatriz - Eloy AzorínEloy AzorinEloy Azorín is a Spanish film, theatre and television actor.- Biography :Born on the 19th of February, 1977 in Madrid, Spain, he is the son of the humourist Eloy Arenas.Eloy's first film role was at the age of 19...
- Álvaro de Estúñiga - Giuliano GemmaGiuliano Gemma-Biography:Born in Rome, Gemma first worked as a stuntman, then was offered real acting parts by director Duccio Tessari, starting with the film Arrivano i titani . He also made an appearance in Luchino Visconti's Il Gattopardo as Garibaldi's General...
- Señor de Veyre - Roberto Álvarez - Admiral
- Guillermo ToledoGuillermo ToledoGuillermo Toledo or Willy Toledo is a Spanish film and television actor.In 2008 he played in a Spanish commercial for the popular MMORPG World of Warcraft, in a series of commercials that also featured Mr...
-Capitán Corrales - Susi Sánchez - Isabella I of CastileIsabella I of CastileIsabella I was Queen of Castile and León. She and her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon brought stability to both kingdoms that became the basis for the unification of Spain. Later the two laid the foundations for the political unification of Spain under their grandson, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor...
- Chema de Miguel - Juan Manuel, señor de Belmonte
- Andrés Lima - Diego López de Pacheco, marqués de Villena
- Cipriano Lodosa – Marliano
Production
The film is not an accurate portrayal of historical events, taking many liberties with the facts. Some character and plot devices are completely fictional, most notably the Moorish lover of Phillip. Some scenes were loosely based on the stage play La Locura de Amor (Teatro del Principe, Madrid, January 12, 1855) by the dramatist Manuel Tamayo y BausManuel Tamayo y Baus
Manuel Tamayo y Baus was a Spanish dramatist.He was born at Madrid, into a family connected with the theatre, his mother being the eminent actress Joaquina Baus. It is interesting to note that she appeared as Geneviève de Brabant in an arrangement from the French made by Tamayo when he was in his...
(1829–1898) that inspired a previous film with the same subject.
Juana La Loca was shot in historical castles and places in Sigüenza
Sigüenza
Sigüenza is a city in the province of Guadalajara in Spain.-History:The site of the ancient Segontia of the Celtiberian Arevaci, now called Villavieja , is half a league distant from the present Sigüenza...
, Talamanca de Jarama
Talamanca de Jarama
Talamanca de Jarama is a municipality of the Community of Madrid, Spain.Sights include the Romanesque church of San Juan Bautista, a 17th century Carthusian monastery and the so-called Ábside de los Milagros , what remains of a mid-13th century church.-Twinnings: Talamanca Canton, Costa Rica...
, the Monastery of Las Huelgas in Burgos
Burgos
Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...
, and Guimarães
Guimarães
Guimarães Municipality is located in northwestern Portugal in the province of Minho and in the Braga District. It contains the city of Guimarães.The present Mayor is António Magalhães Silva, elected by the Socialist Party.-Parishes:-Economy:...
in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, among other carefully chosen spots. The music for the film was composed by José Nieto
José Nieto
José Nieto , is a Spanish musician and composer, best known for his film work.- Life :Born in Madrid, Spain, in 1943, in 1958 he joined the band "Los Pekenikes", playing the drums. He began his career as a professional musician in 1962 in orchestras and jazz dance groups...
, who took inspiration in the Burgos school of organists, such as Antonio de Cabezón
Antonio de Cabezón
Antonio de Cabezón was a Spanish Renaissance composer and organist. Blind from childhood, he quickly rose to prominence as performer and was eventually employed by the royal family...
, and La Folia Española
Folia
La Folia is one of the oldest remembered European musical themes, or primary material, generally melodic, of a composition, on record. The theme exists in two versions, referred to as early and late folias, the earlier being faster.-History:The epithet 'Folia' has several meanings in music...
, Luis de Milán
Luis de Milán
Luis de Milán was a Spanish Renaissance composer, vihuelist , and writer on music...
, important 16th century composer.
The film Juana La Loca ran into several problems even before it was released to the public. The Italian co-producers changed certain parts of the film for the Italian premier, and Aranda had to threaten them with law suits. However, the version released in Spain and the USA was the original, as Aranda conceived it. The film was Spanish entry of that year to the Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
. It was picked up by Sony pictures and was distributed in the USA retitling the film in the American market as Mad Love instead of the more appropriate "Joanna The Mad". The same name had already been used by Mad Love
Mad Love (1995 film)
Mad Love is a 1995 romantic drama film directed by Antonia Bird and starring Chris O'Donnell, Drew Barrymore and Matthew Lillard. The screenplay was written by Paula Milne. The original music score is composed by Andy Roberts.- Synopsis :...
, a film starring Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blyth Barrymore is an American actress, film director, screenwriter, producer and model. She is a member of the Barrymore family of American actors and granddaughter of John Barrymore. She first appeared in an advertisement when she was 11 months old. Barrymore made her film debut in Altered...
and Chris O'Donnell
Chris O'Donnell
Christopher Eugene "Chris" O'Donnell is an American actor. He has played Robin in two Batman films, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, Charlie Simms in Scent of a Woman, Finn Dandridge in Grey's Anatomy, Peter Garrett in Vertical Limit, and more recently, Jack McAuliffe in The Company. O'Donnell...
in 1995.
DVD release
The film was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in the U.S.A. on January 21, 2003. The film is in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
with English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
subtitles.