Feature film
La Virgen de la Caridad
Ramón Peón · 1930
Synopsis
Yeyo and his grandmother Ritica farm La Bijirita, a farm tied to the memory of Yeyo's father, who died for the freedom of Cuba. Matías Delgado claims the land, and Fernández, a wealthy rancher, sells it to him with the help of bribed officials; without title deeds, the old woman and her grandson are threatened with eviction. Yeyo loves Trina, daughter of Don Pedro, whom Fernández wants to marry.
Context
The screenplay comes from a short novel by Enrique Agüero Hidalgo, awarded a prize in a competition run by the daily El Mundo. The last production of Peón's company, photographed by Ricardo Delgado, with sets by Ernesto Caparrós, the film was released on 8 September 1930 at the Rialto in Havana, the feast day of the island's patron saint; its English intertitles were meant to serve for a release in the United States. Shot on location, it uses close-ups, fades and tracking shots, and ends on a Griffith-style chase. It was shown in Bologna in 2016 and in Pordenone in 2024.
Who it is for
A silent film of seventy-one minutes; despite its title, its subject is not primarily religious.
Prizes and reception
The Bologna festival presents it as the most important Cuban film from before the revolution, and the best by its director.
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