The Damned (2009 film)

The Damned (Spanish: Los condenados) is a 2009 Spanish drama film directed by Isaki Lacuesta from a screenplay by Lacuesta and Isa Campo. Its cast features Daniel Fanego, Arturo Goetz, María Fiorentino, Leonor Manso, Nazareno Casero, Juana Hidalgo, and Bárbara Lennie.

The Damned
Spanish	Los condenados
Directed by	Isaki Lacuesta
Screenplay by	Isaki Lacuesta Isa Campo
Produced by	Xavier Atance
Starring	Daniel Fanego Arturo Goetz María Fiorentino Leonor Manso Nazareno Casero Juana Hidalgo Bárbara Lennie
Cinematography	Diego Dussuel
Edited by	Domi Parra
Music by	Gerard Gil
Production company	Benecé Produccions
Distributed by	Barton Films
Release dates	25 September 2009 (2009-09-25) (Zinemaldia) 20 November 2009 (2009-11-20) (Spain)
Country	Spain
Language	Spanish

Plot

Former guerrilla fighter Raúl recalls former pal Martín to South America from the latter's Spanish exile after 30 years. Raúl is trying to find the corpse of a common partner, Ezequiel.^[1][2]

Cast

• Arturo Goetz as Raúl^[1]
• Daniel Fanego [es] as Martín^[1]
• Leonor Manso as Andrea^[1]
• Juana Hidalgo [es] as Luisa^[1]
• Nazareno Casero as Pablo^[1]
• Bárbara Lennie as Silvia^[1]
• María Fiorentino [es] as Vicky^[3]

Production

The film was produced by Benecé Produccions in association with Televisió de Catalunya,^[4] and with the participation of TVE.^[2] It was shot in Argentina, Peru, and Spain (including Barcelona).^[5][6]

Release

The film screened at the 57th San Sebastián International Film Festival on 25 September 2022, closing the festival's official selection slate.^[7] It was theatrically released in Spain on 20 November 2009.^[8]

Reception

Jonathan Holland of Variety deemed The Damned to be "hushed, intense and admirable", pointing out that "silence speaks louder than words" in the film.^[2]

Sergi Sánchez of Fotogramas rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, highlighting a couple of tremendous sequence shots as the film's standout, while citing a scene with Nazareno's character shooting an animal as a negative point.^[9]

Toni Vall of Cinemanía rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, deeming it to be a "an abrupt, imperfect and somewhat emphatic film, but undoubtedly interesting".^[10]

Accolades

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
2009	57th San Sebastián International Film Festival	FIPRESCI Award		Won	[11]
2010	2nd Gaudí Awards	Best Film Not in the Catalan Language		Won	[12]
	54th Sant Jordi Awards	Best Spanish Actress	Bárbara Lennie	Won	[13]

See also

• List of Spanish films of 2009

References

1. "Cineuropa. Do 4 de novembro a 2 de decembro de 2009" (PDF). Santiago de Compostela. 2009. p. 72.
2. Holland, Jonathan (29 September 2009). "The Damned". Variety.
3. ""No busco representar a un colectivo"". Página/12. 28 April 2010.
4. "TVC participa en tres produccions que competeixen al 57 Festival de Cinema de San Sebastià". TV3. 12 September 2009 – via Corporació Catalana de Mitjans Audiovisuals.
5. Ríos Pérez, Sergio (16 January 2009). "Finaliza el rodaje de Los condenados, de Isaki Lacuesta". Cineuropa.
6. "Lacuesta acaba de rodar "Los condenados"". Diari de Girona. Prensa Ibérica. 15 January 2009.
7. "'Los condenados', cierra el Festival de San Sebastián". Periódico de Ibiza. 26 September 2009.
8. "Películas españolas estrenadas" (PDF). Academia (163). Madrid: Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Cinematográficas de España: 68. 2010. ISSN 1136-8144.
9. Sánchez, Sergi (15 September 2009). "Los condenados". Fotogramas.
10. Vall, Toni (20 November 2009). "Los condenados". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
11. Tartaglione, Nancy (14 February 2022). "'One Year, One Night' Clip: First Look At Isaki Lacuesta's Bataclan Survivors Drama – Berlin". Deadline Hollywood.
12. ""Tres días con la familia" y "Las 2 vidas de Andrés Rabadán" triunfan en los Gaudí". Fotogramas. 2 February 2010.
13. "Barbara Lennie, premia la millor actriu en pel·lícula espanyola per "Los Condenados"". rtve.es. 22 April 2010.

External links

• The Damned at IMDb
• The Damned at the TCM Movie Database