" The Plague" Spanish production on BBC4

[Gramsci]

I watched first two episodes of this Spanish production last night.

BBC Four - The Plague, Series 1, Episode 1

Set in Spain of the 1580s its a "film noir" with political overtones.

I liked it and will watch the whole series.

A heretic comes back to plague ridden Seville. I won't spoil plot but he ends up investigating murder of wealthy merchant.

Its big budget production. Seville is one of the characters. At the time Seville was a very important city. The gateway to the " New World". Its part shanty town part wealthy elite.

As director Rodriguez says its metaphor for present day.

I sgree. Its has everything. Migrants stuck in slums desperate to leave for better life. Political corruption and intrigue. Life being all about enriching oneself. Religious intolerance. A society tettering on collapsing.

All very relevant.

 

[Gramsci]

The director Alberto Rodriguez has made films.

Alberto Rodríguez. Film. Biography and works at Spain is culture.

My Spanish partner liked this one.

7 vírgenes (2005) - IMDb

 

[Gramsci]

More info.

Movistar +: Telefonica’s Flagship Premium Series ‘The Plague’ Aims to Rewrite TV History

One further attraction of “The Plague” was setting the series at a historical tipping-point, right before the decline of the Spanish Empire, a time when Seville was the center of the world and the port of entry for gold from the New World.

“The Plague” “is a detective story, but at the bottom it’s about conflicts, power, politics, religion … that took place in a distant era but could be transferred to the present,” says Rodriguez.