Joris Ivens’s advocacy documentary for the Republican cause intercuts a besieged Madrid with a nearby village digging an irrigation canal, linking the war to bread, land, and survival. Produced by the writers’ collective Contemporary Historians, edited by Helen van Dongen, scored by Marc Blitzstein, and narrated in its U.S. version by Ernest Hemingway (after an initial Orson Welles track), it blends frontline reportage with persuasion against Franco’s forces and their German–Italian backers.
Directed by Joris Ivens
spanish civil war (1936-39)
IMDB
N/A
Letterboxd
3.4 / 5
Where to Watch
Cast
Dolores Ibárruri
Herself
Orson Welles
Narrator (voice)
Ernest Hemingway
Narrator (voice)
Jean Renoir
Narrator (voice)
Crew
Joris Ivens
Director
Joris Ivens
Writer
Lillian Hellman
Writer
Ernest Hemingway
Writer
John Fernhout
Director of Photography
Popular Reviews
1 review
Sam Bowen
4.4★ · 10/09/24
Watched this in class… idk. I’m actually really interested by the content in this module regarding the Spanish Civil War but this was so dull. Desperately needed help from people in the entertainment industry.
Movies I Had to Watch for Spanish Class, Ranked
Watched this in class… idk. I’m actually really interested by the content in this module regarding the Spanish Civil War but this was so dull. Desperately needed help from people in the entertainment industry.
