Fiesta

Running time: N/A

A young Spaniard student, Rafael, is abruptly summoned home from his French boarding school and rudely thrust into the lethal chaos of the Spanish Civil War. Before he has even a chance to catch his breath, he finds himself in Pamplona, a lieutenant in Franco's fascist army, under the command of the chillingly bizarre Colonel Masagual (Jean-Louis Trintignant of Krysztof Kieslowski's Red). In "basic training," the young officer is pressed into a horrific service as a member of the Colonel's firing squad. Left with virtually no choice, Rafael performs his duty in a trance, completely overcome by this dreadful descent into a dark and surreal world. The nightmare grows deeper and blacker as more prisoners--fellow country men, now perceived as enemies--are executed, ironically, on Sundays after Mass, in a repugnant mock-festival setting. Finally, when confronted with the approaching execution of an innocent fifteen-year-old girl, Rafael must make a fateful decision. Jean-Louis Trintignant provides a riveting performance as the morphine-addicted Masagual, forcefully underscoring the mortal terror that surfaces when dilettantes such as the mad Colonel are given God-like powers during times when laws and morality cease to exist. Fiesta presents a deeply disturbing world that is sickening, yet strangely fascinating to behold. It is a world that is not likely to be soon forgotten. --Pete Crane