''The Girl of Your Dreams'' () is a 1998 Spanish

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

produced and directed by

Fernando Trueba Fernando Rodríguez Trueba (born 18 January 1955), known as Fernando Trueba, is a Spanish filmmaker, writer, producer and book editor. Career Between 1974 and 1979, Trueba worked as a film critic for Spain's leading daily newspaper '' El Paí ...

. Set during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, it centers on a fictional Andalusian actress (

Penélope Cruz Penélope Cruz Sánchez (born 28 April 1974) is a Spanish actress. Prolific in Spanish and English-language films, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, a David di Donatello and three Goya Awards. Cru ...

) making a film in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

who becomes the object of

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief Propaganda in Nazi Germany, propagandist for the Nazi Party, and ...

' attention.

Plot

In 1938, while Spain is in the grip of

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, a film team from the territory held by

Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" * Franco of Cologne (mid to late 13th cent ...

's rebels is invited to the co-production in Berlin of a musical set in 19th-century Andalusia, to be shot in separate Spanish and German versions. At first happy to be working away from their war-torn country, the group finds life under

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

increasingly unpleasant and dangerous. Macarena, their attractive star, soon catches the eye of

Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda ...

, the

Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda The Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda (, RMVP), also known simply as the Ministry of Propaganda (), controlled the content of the press, literature, visual arts, film, theater, music and radio in Nazi Germany. The ministr ...

, who is determined to bed her. Though she finds him repulsive and prefers the company of Blas, the married director of the Spanish version, she is made clear that for the sake of the project and of Hispano-German relations she must comply. When she points out that the extras in the film look ridiculously inauthentic, being tall and fair-haired, they are replaced by short dark

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

and

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnic groups * Romani people, or Roma, an ethnic group of Indo-Aryan origin ** Romani language, an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities ** Romanichal, Romani subgroup in the United Kingdom * Romanians (Romanian ...

prisoners from a

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

, under armed SS guards. An extra with whom she sympathises, a handsome Russian called Leo, escapes the guards and she smuggles him into the villa where Goebbels has installed her. When Goebbels calls round, Leo knocks him out cold. Blas realises that this is the end of the road for the project and rushes to see Goebbels'

wife A wife (: wives) is a woman in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until their marriage is legally dissolved with a divorce judgment; or until death, depending on the kind of marriage. On t ...

, who is well aware of her husband's activities. She writes him a pass enabling Leo, Macarena and her dresser to board a plane that night. The fate of the rest of the group, under arrest, is unclear.

Cast

Historical background

During the Civil War, filmmakers from the Nationalist side found work in Germany and Italy. For example, in 1938 at the UFA studios in

Babelsberg Babelsberg () is the largest quarter of Potsdam, the capital city of the German state of Brandenburg. The neighbourhood is named after a small hill on the Havel river. It is the location of Babelsberg Palace and Park, part of the Palaces and Park ...

, the Spanish director

Florián Rey Antonio Martínez del Castillo known professionally as Florián Rey was a Spanish director, actor, and screenwriter. He directed '' The Cursed Village'', widely recognized as a seminal work in silent Spanish cinema, and helped launch the career ...

filmed ''

Carmen, la de Triana ''Carmen, la de Triana'' (''Carmen, the girl from Triana'') is a 1938 Spanish/German musical film directed by Florián Rey and starring Imperio Argentina, Rafael Rivelles and Manuel Luna. It was a Spanish-language version of the 1938 film '' N ...

'' in Spanish and a German version called '' Andalusische Nächte'', both starring the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

singer and actress

Imperio Argentina María Magdalena Nile del Río (26 December 1906 – 22 August 2003) was an Argentine professional singer and movie actress, better known as Imperio Argentina; she became a citizen of Spain in 1999. María Magdalena Nile del Río was born ...

with whom, according to legend,

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

fell in love. She is reported to have sued the producers and director for using her life story without permission.

Accolades

Sequel

A sequel, ''

La reina de España ''The Queen of Spain'' () is a 2016 Spanish comedy-drama film written and directed by Fernando Trueba. Starring Penélope Cruz, Antonio Resines, Neus Asensi, Ana Belén, Javier Cámara, Chino Darín, Loles León, Arturo Ripstein, Jorge Sanz, R ...

'' (English: "The Queen of Spain"), starring

and

Jorge Sanz Jorge Sanz Miranda (born 26 August 1969) is a Spanish actor and one of the most prominent actors of the Spanish cinema since the 1980s. He is known to international audiences for his roles in the films: '' Amantes'' (1991) by director Vicente Ar ...

, was released on 25 November 2016.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Girl Of Your Dreams, The 1998 drama films 1998 films Best Film Goya Award winners Films about filmmaking Drama films based on actual events Films directed by Fernando Trueba Films featuring a Best Actress Goya Award–winning performance Films set in Berlin Films set in Germany Films set in 1939 1990s German-language films 1990s Russian-language films Spanish Civil War films 1990s Spanish-language films Films shot in the Czech Republic Films with screenplays by Rafael Azcona Films shot at Babelsberg Studios Films about Romani people Cultural depictions of Joseph Goebbels 1998 multilingual films Spanish multilingual films 1990s Spanish films Films scored by Antoine Duhamel