Rendita, neutralità e propaganda: il contributo spagnolo all’immagine cinematografica internazionale della Grande guerra

Abstract

Rent, neutrality and propaganda: the Spanish contribution to the international image of WW1 in the movies

The present study reconstructs the Spanish perspective on WW1 and its mid term and long term influence on the cinematic international representation of the war, during both the war years and the early postwar period. The focus is on four major elements: a) the weakness of the polycentric boom the Spanish film indus- try experienced during the war years; b) the filming imagination of the Generación del ’14 (the Spanish equivalent of the Lost Generation) as a filter for the memory and the composed heritage of the Spanish-American War, considered as a key factor to rethink and better understand Spanish neutrality and its meaning; c) the filming culture as a key factor in Segundo de Chomón and Blasco Ibáñez’s propaganda activities in Italy and France; d) the postwar beginning of a new cinematic perspective on Spain, first improved by Hemingway’s veteran interpretation of bullfighting and violence.

Received: 10-09-2014