‘Venus’: The bar of memories

With a long career in theater, Víctor Conde makes his big screen debut with a project that seems personal, ‘Venus’, a film based on one of his plays that debuted with great success at the Pavón Theater in 2017, under the Kamikaze group. Such was the reception of the public that the show was revised a year later, within the programming of the Teatro del Canal, repeating the positive results of its debut. Hence, his leap to the big screen is logical.

Conde opts for a sober style, with an elegant black and white and almost a single environment, a neighborhood bar that acts as a bridge between the present and the past. The tape starts with Jorge, a middle-aged man who returns to Madrid for his father’s funeral, which takes him back to the neighborhood of his childhood, which awakens many memories that he had left buried in his memory. Conde plays with this, with a narrative that weaves together different timelines, with which to expose the protagonist’s inner ghosts.

Thus characters emerge who explain why his mother died so young and his father had to take care of him alone; how his parents fell in love when they were in a band; to be reunited with an old love of his youth whose parting was terribly bitter; rediscover the reasons why his mother left the family nest; closing the pending wounds he has with his recently deceased father. All with that bar as an accomplice scenography, which, moreover, highlights the theatrical origin of the film.

Rediscovering old wounds from the past

Condé’s style evokes that of Philippe Garrel, with films such as “Lover for a Day” or “The Salt of Tears” as main references, although the same playwright has cited much more cinematically ambitious features such as “War cold” or “Rome” . Given its spirit of small-scale independent production, its style is also reminiscent of Hong Sang-soo’s black-and-white films.especially in those moments of sentimental encounters and disagreements.

The result is a small production that knows how to convey a deep sense of nostalgia., but who makes the mistake of intertwining too many narrative lines, causing a confused reading of his stories. It also doesn’t help that there are some characters, such as those played by Elena Furiase, Lolita and Miquel Fernández, whose presence in the film is not entirely clear, despite their correct interpretations.

Sure, its cast is splendid, highlighting Antonio Hortelano as that man who ends up reconciling with his past. Mention to Juan Diego, in one of his last appearances in front of the camera. Precisely, his presence, albeit brief, rises to a ribbon which, on the other hand, shows a director who knows how to have his pulse when it comes to evoking the feeling of reliving yesterday’s memories. ‘Venus’ stands out precisely for being this, being a correct debut.

Note: 6

The best: The sequences that belong purely to the past of Jorge’s parents.

Worse: There comes a moment when the viewer gets lost in the meantime.