Viridiana • The Next Reel

“Don’t think badly of me. I only want her near me.” It’s time for another Listener’s Choice episode, and boy, do we have a doozy this week. Listener Diego Luis Contreras López wanted us to talk about a film from Spain and settled on Luis Buñuel’s return to his home country (and immediate departure thereafter) with his 1961 film “Viridiana.” Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we delve into our sixth listener’s choice with “Viridiana.” We talk about our previous (and limited) experiences with Buñuel and what our expectations were with this film, contrasting that with how we ended up feeling about the film. We discuss the many things Buñuel was doing and saying with this film and how that ties into the actual story of Viridiana. We chat about the performances, notably Silvia Pinal, Fernando Rey, Francisco Rabal and Margarita Lozano, and how much we liked all of them. We debate the look of the film and José F. Aguayo’s cinematography and how it was affected by Buñuel’s desire to put the importance of coming in on time and under budget ahead of sloppy filmmaking sometimes. And we look at the film’s release, the reaction to it from the Catholic Church and its banishment from several countries leading to more of an underground screening history after its win at Cannes. It’s a film in which we found a lot of meat to discuss and are thrilled to add it to the films we’ve discussed. Tune in! Film Sundries Script Transcript — EnglishOriginal theatrical trailerOriginal poster artworkHalma by Benito Perez GaldosFlickchartYou Won’t Live to See the Last Star Wars Movie Trailers of the WeekAndy’s Trailer: The Boss — “It’s Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Bell in an R-rated girl scout comedy. This is right up my alley which scares me a little, but it’s true.”Pete’s Trailer: Extraction — “Bruce Willis and family! Again!”Support The Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Become a member for just $5/month or $55/yearJoin our Discord community of movie loversThe Next Reel Family of Film Podcasts:Cinema Scope: Bridging Genres, Subgenres, and MovementsThe Film BoardMovies We LikeThe Next Reel Film PodcastSitting in the DarkConnect With Us:Main Site: WebMovie Platforms: Letterboxd | FlickchartSocial Media: Facebook | Instagram | Threads | Bluesky | YouTube | PinterestYour Hosts: Andy | PeteShop & Stream:Merch Store: Apparel, stickers, mugs & moreWatch Page: Buy/rent films we've discussedOriginals: Source material from our episodesSpecial offers: Letterboxd Pro/Patron discount | Audible