La pervivencia de los mitos: la Guerra de la Independencia en el cine

Abstract

Since the beginning of the 20th Century, film production joined arts and literature in order to keep alive the myth of the 'Spanish War of Independence', as it is called in Spain the Peninsular War. The heroic struggle of the people against a powerful empire is the main topic of more than fifty movies. These films also reflect the political situation and the prevailing mentality of the time of its production, providing a reference to the society that stares at them. In those movies the main characters, who achieved the heroic deed, are highly enhanced: the people of Madrid, Agustina de Aragón and the guerrilla. Besides, cinema also explored the painter Francisco Goya, an universal character. His works denounced the human nature extremes and the horrors of war. Thus, Goya is presented as a collective referent to explain the restlessness and duality of such a critical period.