Search The Archive
In 1808, Spain was "peacefully" invaded by Napoleon's armies and received her first taste ai totalitarian government. The Spaniards rebelled and were plunged into a long, bloody, cruel war. Francisco de Goya, the great Spanish painter, recorded the transition from peace to rebellion in a series of lithographs, which are here reproduced to tell the struggles of Spain during the Napoleonic era.
The film illustrates the hardship, futility and utter catastrophe of war. War itself is the only conqueror, yet the artist has here wrung a victory for the spirit of man. We date our own public hatred of war from the First World War, yet here is a public cry a hundred years before this time.
The impression the film gives is of crowds and movement. This is gained by swift' cutting, dramatic cumulation of detail. and the insistent rhythm of Segovia's musical accompaniment.