Film industry and the reconstruction of memory

Abstract

Since the transition to democracy in Spain, many films and novels have been written about the Civil War. Even books that were written during the dictatorship but censored by the regime have again seen the light and have been widely read by an educated and uneducated population. But it is the space of film where public discussion of civil war and dictatorship has circumvented the restrictions imposed by the Pact of Oblivion. The film has become a kind of memorial that brings to light past violations, it presents it directly into the public sphere and draws our attention to what “really” happened. In this sense it is more effective than books and scholarly articles to bring the memory from oblivion, in protecting the dignity of the victims. Film shows us a side of the story, a version untold until now. In this article I want to introduce the discussion on memory as part of transitions to democracy and discuss three films that have entered the debate on the civil war and dictatorship, namely: Soldados de Salamina (David Trueba, 2002); Las Trece Rosas (Emilio Martínez- Lázaro , 2007) and Salvador Puig Antich (Manuel Huerga, 2006).