Film Review-Carol's Journal (2002)

I am not a movie critic but I think it is important to study the war via several different avenues. SO on a somewhat regular basis I will provide reviews of movies, documentaries, and books about the war. This means I will also need to go back to watch those I already did. This may be a challenge since I only have Netflix and Amazon by which to do so. There will be spoilers, so please watch the film is you don’t want to get a spoiler.

My first review is for the 2002 Spanish film Carol’s Journey (El viaje de Carol) directed by Imanol Uribe. The movie stars Clara Lago as the protagonist Carol, Juan José Ballesta as Tomiche Carol’s “love” interest, Álvaro de Luna as Don Amalio, as Carol’s grandfather, and María Barranco as Aurora Carol’s mother. The movie is set in 1938 and I have been unable to figure out where the movie takes place but it is not near the fighting.

In a nutshell Carol is a Spanish-American, her mother is Spanish and her father American, we later find out that her father is a pilot with the Spanish Republican Air Force. Her mother and her move from New York to Spain-at first I thought to myself-you are going the wrong way but it later becomes known that her mother is dying and she wanted to came home to die and her American father is with the Republicans.

Her immediate family was wealthy, liberal and progressive and escaped Madrid to their hometown to ride out the war. Though not all of her family had the same ideas. Two of the main Francoistas are related to her. Remember when I said the countryside was more conservative? Yep, that was the case in the film. There were local Falangist Blue Shirts running wild so to speak.
On to the plot, Carol and her mother live with her mother’s father, a gentle man, who seems distant from his granddaughter. Following the death of Carol’s mother she goes to live with her Aunt. While living with her grandfather she runs into a group of local teenage boys who pester her but one boy in particular, Tomiche, goes a little to far and she racks him. Which apparently is how kids in Spain in the way back start romances. Carol falls for Tomiche a poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks.

Early one morning Carol and the boys are out catching finches to sell when the Blue Shirts prepare to round up local “leftists” who are seen latter piled in a truck and driven off and taken “on a Walk”. Tomiche’s father was taken “on a walk” when the war started-Tomiche explains to Carol what “on a walk” means. One of the other two boys later tell Carol that Tomiche’s father was taken “on a walk” and shot by the local Franco supporters, the shots triggering Tomiche.

An interesting postal history part of the movie was the Portuguese smuggler who would mail letters to the Republican zone for 15 Pesetas. One day, a Republican plan drops a package in the center of town. This is when we learn that Carol’s father is a Republican flier. Inside of the box is a toy Republican plane. After this we see her give the smuggler money to mail a letter to her father.

The war ends and the local Francoistas celebrate and Tomiche’s uncle is a policeman and beats the crap out of him. Carol’s father sneaks in to town by dressing as a Nationalist soldier. He hides in his grandfather’s home then flees to the forest. Carol and Tomiche go to look for him, as does the Falangists. Tomiche locates her date in the river but is accidentally killed when the pursuers fire at him and Carol’s father. Her father carries the dead Tomiche and is captured by the Falangist.

The movie ends with Carol being sent back to New York to live with her paternal grandparents. Grandfather Don Amalio says to Carol that her father being American will not be held very long. That is how it ends. I am doing this from memory o the time line may be a little off. But you get the gist.

I really enjoyed the film-it was beautifully shot-I does give you a sense of the tensions of the conflict, the story I thought was engaging and the acting solid. It wasn’t overly preachy which I appreciate as so many of these movies become over the top in their messaging. I think this was a 5 out of 5 for me. Really worth watching again-it had a Giuseppe Tornatore feel to it.

Eureka!!

OK, I have been picking up several censored and other Spanish covers, postcards, and stamps in a rush to immerse myself in the subject-which of course comes with spending some $$. However, this in the long run isn't going to work for me. I needed to determine at what angle to approach this subject and the collection. So, after some reflection what I have figured out is that what I am really interested in are; patriotic overprints of Republican stamps by Nationalists, "cinderellas" such as local on and off cover postal issues, propaganda, fund raising, culture, and other topics, propaganda postcards, and military covers, postcards, and stamps.

I am also looking to pick up examples of the various censor stamps and tapes. As well as modern post-war issues that mark the conflict-and last but not least refugee items related to the conflict.

 So Eureka!

The Players-The Nationalists

For the sake of clarity I will refer to the forces opposing the Republic as Nationalists. This is because this seems to be the generally accepted term for them.

The eventual winners of the war were the Nationalists. The Nationalists were a motley group of regime opponents. The first major group was the rebel units and members of the Spanish Republican military who kicked off the war. Those Spaniards who supported the rebellion tended to be conservative upper class, liberal professionals, religious individuals and groups, and landed farmers. Not unlike other places and times and not unlike the good ol’ U.S.A. The largest geographical area of support for the uprising was in Spain’s rural areas such as “ almost all of Old Castile, as well as La Rioja, Navarra, Alava, the area near Zaragoza in Aragon, most of Galicia, parts of Cáceres in Extremadura and many dispersed pockets in rural Andalucía where the local society still followed ancient traditional patterns and was yet untouched by "modern" thought”.

The Nationalists consisted of the actual fascist Falange, the Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Right-wing Groups (CEDA)

, Alfonsists who supported putting Alfonse the XIII back on the throne, the Carlists who clung to their dream of reinstating their branch of the royal family

, and the Army of Africa’s Moroccan troops. The Catholic Church was a strong supporter of the Nationalists especially because of the anti-clericalism of some factions of the Republic. There were others who supported the Nationalists who were moderated but opposed the Republic, as there were moderates who supported the Republic.

In 1937 Franco announced the unification of all factions of the movement in to a single unified force.

The Players-The Republic

Who were the players in the Civil War? They fell into two groups-generally-as sometimes this was for realpolitik reasons. We will first look at the Republicans in General.

The Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 and ceased to exist in Spain on April 1st, 1939. However the government would live on in Mexico City until 1976 when a democratic government was restored following Franco’s death and the government in exile was disbanded.

Following the establishment of the Republic a provisional government would be in effect until December of 1931. The first Republican government was led by Manuel Azaña who headed a collection of left political parties and interests whose agenda was to “reform” Spain and bring it more in line with Western Europe. In the wake of the 1933 general election Alejandro Lerroux of the Radical Party formed a government with the support of the Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Right-wing Groups (CEDA), and organization whose function was “to protect religion, family, and property”. This would a common theme in Nationalist propaganda.

During the time of Lerroux’s government the Republican Army suppressed an insurrection by anarchists and socialists in Asturias. Things for the Republic went down hill from here-instead of being content with the government’s squashing of the left wing uprising the more right-wing Spanish groups and individuals saw the uprising as preview of what was to come from the Republic.

In 1936 the Popular Front won the general election which then triggered the Nationalist revolt 17–18 July 1936.

By looking at the members of the Popular Front one could see how this was perceived by the rightest as a threat to “their” Spain. According to Wiki:

 “The Popular Front consisted off Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), Communist Party of Spain (PCE), the Workers' Party of Marxist Unification (POUM, independent communist) and the republicans: Republican Left (IR), (led by Azaña) and Republican Union (UR), led by Diego Martínez Barrio. This pact was supported by Galician (PG) and Catalan nationalists (ERC), socialist union Workers' General Union (UGT), and the anarchist trade union, the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT). Many anarchists who would later fight alongside Popular Front forces during the Spanish Civil War did not support them in the election, urging abstention instead.”

There were three Republican governments during the Civil War-One led by José Giral from July to September 1936. Even though he was left of center this wouldn’t do for the libertarian socialists, anarchists, and communists who launched a revolution against the Republic which did nothing to help the Republic hold off the Nationalists.

Following the Giral government a socialist and member of The Trade Union General Union of Workers (UGT) Francisco Largo Caballero would take the Republican reins. His government has strong support from the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT).

The final Republican government in Spain was led by socialist Juan Negrín. Juan would led the government until he was ousted by the military coup of Segismundo Casado. This coup was led to the end of the resistance by Republicans to the Nationalists.

The First of the First-About the blog, its purpose, and its parameters

Hello everyone who stumbles across this blog. My name is Bman and I have always had an interest in the Spanish Civil War. I am really not sure why the conflict speaks to me. Perhaps it is the struggle between Left and Right. Perhaps it is the incredible pop culture that surrounds the war from movies, music, postal history, books, etc. Perhaps it is the romanticization of the Left's response to the insurgency of Franco and others. Or, perhaps it is the wide range of actors involved from the left, right, center, and the colonies. Not sure why but here we are.

The goal and the purpose of this blog is for me to have an opportunity to examine the war by examining the postal history that I acquire. At one time I was an avid collector of stamps with a focus on military and occupation issues but those days are long gone. All of which, is packed away at my parents several states away from my currant abode.

The Spanish Civil War began on July 17th, 1936-April 1st, 1939. This is the period we will focus on. The postal history before and after the war is fascinating and worth examining but it isn't our focus.

The collecting parameters are the 2nd Republic founded April 14th, 1931 and ending April  1st, 1939. There isn't plan to pickup every Republican issues-only those issued during the war.

Depending on the source you read Franco and his forces are referred to as insurgents, rebels, fascists, or Nationalists. For the sake of clarity I will refer to the Republicans on the whole as Republican and to the various groups aligned against the Republic as Nationalists. Specific posts will refer to specific groups as necessary-P.O.U.M and Carlists for example.

There are steps that I need to take-one pick up storage items for the stamps and the envelopes "covers" acquired. Purchase the various Edifil Catalogo Especializado de Espana that cover the patriotic overprints, various local issues and patriotic labels as well as the general issues of the Republic and of the Nationalists. These aren't cheap as the several volumes of these are about $100 per and I will perhaps pick up a couple for my birthday.

I am sure apart from the posts on postal history there will be book reviews, oddball SCW items for sale on eBay etc. Also am not a partisan of the conflict there were good people and bad people on both sides and people were compelled to pick sides for various reasons-and those that couldn't perhaps laid low or left the country.

Welcome aboard!