''Actresses'' (

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

: ''Actrius'') is a 1997

Catalan language Catalan (; autonym: , ), known in the Valencian Community and Carche as ''Valencian'' (autonym: ), is a Western Romance language. It is the official language of Andorra, and an official language of three autonomous communities in eastern Spa ...

Spanish drama film produced and directed by

Ventura Pons Ventura Pons Sala (; born 25 July 1945, in Barcelona, Spain) is a Spanish movie director. He mainly directs films in Catalan but also in Spanish and English. Pons has directed 32 feature films and is one of the best-known Catalan film directors ...

and based on the award-winning stage play ''E.R.'' by

Josep Maria Benet i Jornet Josep Maria Benet i Jornet (; 20 June 1940 – 6 April 2020), also known as "Papitu", was one of the most renowned Catalan playwrights, considered one of the main renewers of Catalan theater. Biography He was born in a tiny Barcelona apartment i ...

. The film has no male actors, with all roles played by females. The film was produced in 1996.

Synopsis

In order to prepare herself to play a role commemorating the life of legendary actress Empar Ribera, young actress ( Mercè Pons) interviews three established actresses who had been the Ribera's pupils: the international diva Glòria Marc (

Núria Espert Núria Espert Romero (born 11 June 1935 in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Catalonia, Spain) is a Spanish theatre and television actor, and theatre and opera director. When she was 19 years old, she married the actor :es:Armando Moreno, Armando Mo ...

), the television star Assumpta Roca ( Rosa Maria Sardà), and dubbing director Maria Caminal ( Anna Lizaran).

Cast

as Glòria Marc * Rosa Maria Sardà as Assumpta Roca * Anna Lizaran as Maria Caminal * Mercè Pons as Estudiant

Recognition

Screenings

''Actrius'' screened in 2001 at the

Grauman's Egyptian Theatre Grauman's Egyptian Theatre is a historic movie theater A movie theater (American English), cinema (British English), or cinema hall ( Indian English), also known as a movie house, picture house, the movies, the pictures, picture theater ...

in an

American Cinematheque The American Cinematheque is an independent, nonprofit cultural organization in Los Angeles, California, United States dedicated exclusively to the public presentation of the moving image in all its forms. The Cinematheque was created in 1981 as ...

retrospective of the works of its director. The film had first screened at the same location in 1998. It was also shown at the 1997

Stockholm International Film Festival The Stockholm International Film Festival ( sv, Stockholms filmfestival, italic=no) is an annual film festival held in Stockholm, Sweden. It was launched in 1990 and has been held every year since then during the second half of November. The w ...

Reception

In ''Movie - Film - Review'', Christopher Tookey wrote that though the actresses were "competent in roles that may have some reference to their own careers", the film "is visually unimaginative, never escapes its stage origins, and is almost totally lacking in revelation or surprising incident". Noting that there were "occasional, refreshing moments of intergenerational bitchiness", they did not "justify comparisons to ''

All About Eve ''All About Eve'' is a 1950 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve" by Mary Orr, although Orr does ...

''", and were "insufficiently different to deserve critical parallels with ''

Rashomon is a 1950 Jidaigeki psychological thriller/crime film directed and written by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori (actor), Masayuki Mori, and ...

''". He also wrote that ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' called the film a "slow, stuffy chamber-piece", and that ''

The Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

'' stated the film's "best moments exhibit the bitchy tantrums seething beneath the threesome's composed veneers". MRQE wrote "This cinematic adaptation of a theatrical work is true to the original, but does not stray far from a theatrical rendering of the story."

Awards and nominations

* 1997, won 'Best Catalan Film' at

Butaca Awards The Butaca Theater Awards of Catalonia (full Catalan name: ''Premis Butaca de teatre de Catalunya'', short form: Butaca Awards, i.e. ''Premis Butaca'') are annual theater awards judged by popular vote existing since 1995 in Catalonia to reward thos ...

for

* 1997, won 'Best Catalan Film Actress' at Butaca Awards, shared by

, Rosa Maria Sardà, Anna Lizaran, and Mercè Pons * 1998, nominated for 'Best Screenplay' at

Goya Awards The Goya Awards ( es, Premios Goya) are Spain's main national annual film awards, commonly referred to as the Academy Awards of Spain. The awards were established in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sc ...

, shared by

and Ventura Pons

References

External links

* * {{official website, https://web.archive.org/web/20090217140746/http://venturapons.com/filmografia/actrices.html as archived 17 February 2009 (Spanish) 1997 films 1997 drama films Catalan-language films Films set in Barcelona Films directed by Ventura Pons Spanish drama films 1990s Spanish films