Maspalomas
A Spanish drama about a man who has been living a carefree life as an openly gay man in Gran Canaria for years, but who, following an accident, ends up in a conservative rehabilitation centre in San Sebastián and goes back into the closet.
Vicente, now 76 years old, came out of the closet and left his wife and daughter when he was 50. He has spent the last 25 years living happily with his partner in Maspalomas (Gran Canaria). However, everything is turned upside down when Vicente suffers a stroke that leaves him in a coma.
When he wakes up, he is faced with an unexpected reality: he has been moved back to San Sebastián, and his daughter has placed him in a nursing home. Vicente decides not to offer any explanation about his sexual orientation. At first, he doesn’t think it’s necessary. And so, almost without realizing it, Vicente returns to where he started – he goes back into the closet, renouncing everything he worked so hard to achieve.
With Maspalomas, the Basque directors’ collective Moriarti paints an intimate, sensitive and multi-layered portrait. A film about the lifelong quest for freedom and love which also, in passing, breaks another taboo: that surrounding sexuality, lust and love in later life. The film was shot on 35mm film, with a sharp contrast between the sunny, colourful island of Gran Canaria and the bleakness of the care home.
Written by EJ
Post-screening discussion on 28 October
Movies can entertain us, but they can also inform and inspire us. Global Minds at the Movies features films from different parts of the world, followed by a reflection (in English) from someone who has experienced the country, culture, or phenomenon firsthand.