Calle Mayor (1956)

Director:

Juan Antonio Bardem

Writers:

Carlos Arniches (play)
Juan Antonio Bardem

Release Date:

10 March 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A couple of friends decide to have a good time and play a trick on an unmarried woman. Therefore one of them has to pretend to fall in love with her.

Plot Keywords:

Based On Play | Actor Shares First Name With Character

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Betsy Blair	...	Isabel
José Suárez	...	Juan
Yves Massard	...	Federico Rivas
Luis Peña	...	Amigote #1 - Luis
Dora Doll	...	Tonia
Alfonso Godá	...	Amigote #2 - José María - 'Pepe el Calvo'
Manuel Alexandre	...	Amigote #3 - Luciano
José Calvo	...	Amigote #4 - Doctor
Matilde Muñoz Sampedro	...	Chacha
René Blancard	...	Editor
María Gámez	...	Madre
Lila Kedrova	...	Pepita
Josefina Serratosa	...	Obdulia
Julia Delgado Caro	...	Señora de la procesión
José Prada	...	Evaristo
Pilar Gómez Ferrer	...	Mujer de Manuel
Manuel Guitián	...	Taquillero
Margarita Espinosa	...	Maruja
Pilar Vela	...	Encarna
Elisa Méndez	...	Monja 1
Ángeles Bermejo	...	Monja 2
Amelia Ortas	...	Victoria

Directed by
Juan Antonio Bardem

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Carlos Arniches		play "La señorita de Trevélez"
Juan Antonio Bardem

Produced by
Cesáreo González	....	producer
Georges de Beauregard	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Joseph Kosma
Isidro B. Maiztegui

Cinematography by
Michel Kelber

Film Editing by
Margarita de Ochoa

Set Decoration by
Enrique Alarcón

Makeup Department
Dolores Clavel	....	hair stylist
Carmen Martín	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Manuel J. Goyanes	....	production manager
Samuel Menkes	....	assistant production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Marcelo Arroita-Jáuregui	....	assistant director
José Puyol	....	assistant director

Art Department
Antonio Luna	....	property master
Jesús Mateos	....	property master
Ricardo Mengíbar	....	property master

Sound Department
Fernando Bernáldez	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Felipe López	....	still photographer
Mario Pacheco	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Humberto Cornejo	....	wardrober

Editorial Department
Alfonso Santacana	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Serge Baudo	....	musical director (uncredited)

Other crew
Francisco G. Montero	....	production secretary
Carmen Pageo	....	script supervisor
Miguel Pérez Marián	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Suevia Films - Cesáreo González
• Guión Producciones Cinematográficas
• Ibéria Films
• Play Art

Distributors

• Suevia Films - Cesáreo González (1956) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Mondial Films (1956) (France) (theatrical)
• Divisa Home Video (2011) (Spain) (DVD)
• Excisa S.A. (Spain)
• Trans Lux (1958) (USA) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

"Grand' rue" - France (alternative title)
"Main Street" - International (English title) (literal title)
"The Lovemaker" - USA
"Föutca" - Hungary (imdb display title)
"Glówna ulica" - Poland (imdb display title)
"Hauptstraße" - West Germany
"O megalos dromos" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Rua Principal" - Portugal (imdb display title)
"Storgatan" - Sweden

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

Spain | France

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Cuenca, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain

Company:

Suevia Films - Cesáreo González

Trivia:

After Bardem's jailing and release, he decided to stop early filming in Palencia, and shot the remaining of the movie in the cities of Logroño (most city scenes, including the main square with the arcades) and Cuenca (most nature shots and the apartment building being constructed). The rest was shot in a Madrid studio.

Movie Connections:

Version of "Estudio 1: La señorita de Trevélez" (1971)

Blair and Bardem create a masterpiece

"Calle Mayor" (1956) (US title "The Lovemaker") was written and directed by Juan Antonio Bardem. The film stars the extraordinary Betsy Blair, who had just received an Ocscar nomination for her work in "Marty" (1955).

The plot of this film, although set in provincial Spain, has overtones of "Marty." Ms. Blair is cast as Isabel, an unmarried woman in her 30's. Isabel--and the people on Main Street--have decided that she will be forever unloved and unmarried. Then, several of the bored men of the town decide to play a cruel practical joke--one of them will declare his love for Isabel, promise to marry her, and then reveal the hoax at the last minute.

The joke moves forward as planned, and during the middle of the of the movie, Isabel blossoms as she finds herself in love with, and seemingly loved by, a handsome young man.

Ms. Blair is an extraordinary actor, and she is able to give us a portrait of a woman who is capable of great romantic love, although she's been deprived by circumstances of any opportunity to express this emotion. It is to director Bardem's credit that he recognized Ms. Blair's talents, and was able to utilize these talents to the fullest in this film.

Other reviewers have commented on the difficulty of an attractive woman like Betsy Blair playing a woman who is considered unattractive and unmarriageable. (Of course, this problem also arose in "Marty.") Ms. Blair was in Rochester for the screening of "Calle Mayor" at the High Falls Film Festival and this question was raised by a member of the audience. She replied that this was, indeed, a problem, but that she tried to overcome it by having a relatively unattractive hair style, and wearing dresses that were prim and plain. My thought is that a great actor like Ms. Blair was able to transcend the problem. When we see her in "Marty" and "Calle Mayor," we accept the fact that the other characters in the movie don't consider her attractive. We also accept the fact that both women don't consider themselves attractive, or, at least, don't consider themselves attractive enough.

The plot of the movie plays itself out in a fascinating and compelling fashion. The film closes with a final shot of Ms. Blair that is absolutely breathtaking. For me this shot ranks alongside the final shot of Greta Garbo in "Queen Christina" as one of the most memorable endings of any film I've seen.

The disgraceful witch hunt blacklist of the 1950's kept Betsy Blair from doing all the work of which she was capable, and kept us from the pleasure of seeing this work on the screen. We are fortunate that her immense acting skills are preserved for us in "Marty" and "Calle Mayor." "Marty" is readily available; "Calle Mayor" may be hard to find. Finding it is worth the effort--it's a film not to be missed.