La Pasión Turca
Encyclopedia
The Turkish Passion is a 1994 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda
adapted from a popular novel by Antonio Gala
. It stars Ana Belén
and Georges Corraface
. The film is an erotic drama, an exploration of female sexual desire. Highly controversial, La Pasion Turca continues Spanish director Vicente Aranda
's fascination with the dark side of love. The film became one of Spain highest grossing films of the 90s and received twelve nominations to the Goya Awards
in 1995.
During Ramiro’s birthday party, Desideria, her husband and two more couples, decide to travel together to Turkey
. While the group is in Istanbul
amidst the sensual ambiance of the ancient, teeming city, Desi is smitten by the handsome Turkish guide, Yaman. Unable to put brake to her passion, Desi begins a passionate affair
with Yaman. They have sex in the tour bus and from then on Desideria takes advantage of every opportunity during the trip to escape into the arms of her lover. For the first time in her life, she has found sexual fulfillment. After two weeks, the trip is over. Yet, Yaman vows to love his Spanish worshiper forever and the two part ways.
Upon her return home, Desi can hardly concentrate, her thoughts are with Yaman. Her calm marital life has nothing in common with the torrid passion she found with her Turkish lover. She tries to contact him, but fails on her efforts. After a regular trip to the doctor, she learns that she is pregnant. Yet, it is not her husband's child, he is sterile. Desi is adamant to keep the baby in spite of her husband protest. Ramiro knows that he cannot be the father. She offers to divorce him, but, Ramiro agrees to support the child and the couple decides to stay together. Unfortunately, Desi’s son does not live long; the baby dies of high fever and convulsions. After the funeral, grieve stricken, Desi flees for Istanbul looking to forget the drama she is leaving behind and to be reunited with her lover.
Once in Turkey, she stars to search for Yaman, and she finds him in Capadocia. Yaman is happy to see her again and together they settle in his modest home in Istanbul
. They renew their torrid affair and are happy for sometime. Problems star to arise soon. One day an older woman arrives to the house with two children on her charge. She is Yaman’s mother and those are his children. Only then, Desi knows that he has been married before and had children; she also finds out that there have been other women in the house and Yaman’s life, before her.
When Desi goes to the Spanish embassy to inquire about her immigration status in Turkey, Paulina, a woman from the embassy, offers her advice and friendship. She later warns Desi about Yaman. Paulina knows about him and his reputation is not good. However, Desi strongly dismiss the unrequited advice.
Desi wants to have another baby after the one she lost, but once pregnant Yaman, in spite of her protest made her have an abortion. The procedure does not go well and Desi ends up unable to have further children.
When he is not working as a tourist guide, Yaman sells Turkish carpet
s at the bazaar in a family business with his brother. Both of them decide to force Desi to work for them. Besides selling carpets, she would have to provide sexual favors for customers and other carpet dealers. Astonished about this new revelations, Desi with the help of Paulina, flees to Spain.
Back in her country, Desi’s friend, Laura and her husband pick her up at the airport in Madrid
and take her to a hotel, but she is adamant about the choices she has made and refuses further help from her friends. To try to see what it feels to be with another man, Desi has sex with Ivan, a man she has just met, but her failure to feel the same she feels with Yaman, makes her go back to him in Turkey.
Yaman is angry with her because she left and he beats her. She does not care, wanting only to be with him. Yaman accepts her once again, but their relationship turns even darker. Now, Desi willingly accepts to participate in Yaman’s dirty dealings and even have a sexual relationship behind his back, but Yaman’s keeps his sexual domination over her.
Desi helps Yaman to make amends with another carpet dealer that he has tried to deceive. After she sexually pleases the voyeuristic old man, he gives her a small gun as a gift.
Returning home that night, Desi finds Yaman having sex with a couple, Desi can not tolerate him having sex with another man. Unashamed, he drags them to a bar where a belly dancer
is performing. During the dance, Yaman flirts with Desi and the other woman and Desi shoots him between the legs. Yaman falls to the floor badly hurt, but allows Desi to escape. He orders her to flee but never to return. Desi, carrying her bags, leaves Istanbul for good. A part of her has died there.
, Vicente Aranda’s favorite actress, was going to start in the film, but she was unavailable having going to Hollywood to make Barry Levinson
’s Jimmy Hollywood
. The role of Desi was offered to Spanish singer and actress Ana Belén
who is better known internationally as a singer, La Passión Turca is considered by many as her best movie role. Vicente Aranda remembers “ I was very happy, Anna seemed to me the right actress to play the role. Ana Belén and Vicente Aranda became good friends during filming and both remembered it fondly. They would work together again in Libertarias
(1995).
Georges Corraface
plays the role of Yaman, the handsome Turkish tourist guide, whose sexual powers made Deisdera falls madly in love with him. Georges Corraface
is a French- Greek actor who has had an international
career in film
most notably in Escape from L.A.
and Christopher Columbus
. He was very happy working for the first time in Spanish. The story and the character of Yaman attracted him. A man he describes as sadly unable to love and hold that feeling. He gests bored and needs to twist the felling in a pervert way to keep the relationship alive.
Ramón Madaula, a Catalan actor, plays Ramiro, Desi’s husband. Sílvia Munt
, who won the Goya Award as best actress for her role in Alas de Mariposa
(1991), took the role of Laura, Desis’ friend. Loles León
, had the small role of a Spanish embassy employée, she has worked for Pedro Almodóvar
in Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
and for Vicente Aranda in El Amante Bilingüe
(1993) and Libertarias
(1996).
. The year before he had produced Vicente Aranda
’s movie: El Amante Bilingüe
, a film adaptation of a novel written by Juan Marsé
. El Amante Bilingüe
(1993) had been a critical and commercial disappointment; nevertheless, producer and director were eager to make another film together. Andrés Vicente Gómez , thought that if he had made a mistake with the previous film adaptation he now was sure Vicente Aranda
was the right director to adapt La Pasión Turca into a film. The producer had to convince Antonio Gala
who originally would have wanted, Mario Camús to direct the film.
Aranda explains his reason to make La Pasión Turca. “ After making two risky films of little commercial success: El Amante Bilingüe
and Intruso
(1993). I wanted to make a film that would find an audience, and it was like that.
In the process of adapting the novel to a feature film, there were disagreements between Aranda and Antonio Gala. Vicente Aranda remembers: “ When Gala read the script he said that it was like a tree without leaves. That did stick to my mind, because to think that a telegram has leaves is asking for too much, and a film script is like that.
Further disagreements aroused when Vicente Aranda
changed the end of the story.
In the novel, Desideria commits suicide, while in the film, she leaves Istanbul
to nowhere. Aranda explains, “Gala understood that the story could only have ended in suicide. On the other hand, I am against suicide, I can’t help it. I argued that what it seemed to me indispensable, as thesis of the film, was that passion can destroy but it cannot be denied, and my solution eventually prevailed. I filmed two different endings and after several screenings, the producer decided to leave the one I had proposed. When the time came to release the film on DVD, I had the idea to include both endings. Now La Pasión Turca is often transmitted on Television, showing also the alternative ending.”
La Pasión Turca began to be filmed on May 16, 1994. It premiered in Spain
on December 16, 1994. It was filmed in Turkey
(Istanbul
and Capadocia) and in Spain
(Madrid
, Ávila, and Sigüenza
) with a budget of 360 millions pesetas.
Vicente Aranda remembers production in Istanbul
fondly “The shooting in Istanbul was very pleasant for all. We were in a good hotel, everything was very cheap and we used to go shopping to that wonderful place that is the Great Bazaar…We were accused of using stereotypes. What was Turkey for us? Basically, belly dancers. In fact, something similar happens in Spain when foreign directors come here to make films. Showing Barcelona, they present a mule carrying pitchers led by an old man in black. I began to reflect in the unavoidable convenience to used stereotypes as synthesis of element within the narrative.
The character of Desideria Oilván was based on a real woman even though Antonio Gala
vehemently denied it. She was a woman from a well off family from Lleida
. She was married and during a holyday in Turkey fell in love with a local man, leaving everything for him. It was revealed to the film crew, during shooting in the Grand Bazaar, that the real Desideria had a store there selling carpets. In front of the store she had a Spanish flag and a sign Catalan is spoken here. Vicente Aranda
recalls that out of courtesy, he tried to inform her that a film, slightly based on her life, was being made, but she declined any contact with them. The story shown, both in the book and in the film, is of course very different than the real one, and the real Desidera enjoyed a happy life with the Turkish man she married.
explored again with La Mirada del Otro
(1998) but not as successfully. The destructive power of uncontrollable passion and sexual desire also appeared as theme in Aranda’s films: Amantes (1991), Intruso
(1993) and Celos
(1999).
(1998), both films focus on an independent-minded woman's search for sexual fulfillment, which borders on obsession - though the details, obviously, are different. Like Laura Morante
in the later film, Ana Belén here delivers a committed central performance. La Pasión Turca slightly resembles,Shirley Valentine
(1989), a play adapted into a film, in which a middle-aged, working class, housewife life’s is transformed after a holiday abroad.
alone and the film made 625 million pesetas at the box office.
Producer, Andres Vicente Gomez recalls the success of the film “I think Vicente Aranda
made a great movie, with the limitation force upon him with a melodramatic novel. He resolved those problems brilliantly. The actors were great, the story was intriguing and Vicente Aranda
took advantage of the location and all the resources he was provided with. La Pasión Turca was a great success and I was very pleased. All the money I have lost with El Amante Bilingüe
, I made back with this film”.
Among critics, La Pasión Turca has had its fare share of (outspoken) critics and admirers. The film was highly controversial not only for it’s many erotic scenes but for having the director changed the end of the film from was it was on the original novel.
set. The film appears on disc 1 while all of the extras are on disc 2. Aside from a theatrical trailer, a TV spot, a gallery of deleted scenes (in Spanish only), photo gallery, filmographies, making of (in Spanish only), there is also an alternate ending (also in Spanish only) which reinstates the original ending by Aranda reflecting the manner in which the book La Pasión Turca is based upon ends.
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
adapted from a popular novel by Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala Velasco is a Spanish poet, playwright, novelist and writer.Gala was born in Brazatortas, Ciudad Real , although he moved very soon to Córdoba and is widely considered an Andalusian....
. It stars Ana Belén
Ana Belén
Ana Belén is the artistic name of María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, a Spanish actress and singer. She was born on 27 May 1951 in Madrid.- Biography :...
and Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface is a Franco-Greek actor who has had an international career in film and television, following many years in French theatre, notably as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company. His film credits include To Tama, Escape from L.A., La Pasión Turca, Vive La Mariée, Impromptu,...
. The film is an erotic drama, an exploration of female sexual desire. Highly controversial, La Pasion Turca continues Spanish director Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
's fascination with the dark side of love. The film became one of Spain highest grossing films of the 90s and received twelve nominations to the Goya Awards
Goya Awards
The Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
in 1995.
Plot
Desideria Oliván, a well to do woman from Ávila, Spain, is getting married to Ramiro, a handsome young man from a solid background and promising future. The couple settle into a placid comfortable life. Ramiro is an attentive but not very passionate husband and after five years of marriage, they begin to worry that they still do not have children.During Ramiro’s birthday party, Desideria, her husband and two more couples, decide to travel together to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. While the group is in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
amidst the sensual ambiance of the ancient, teeming city, Desi is smitten by the handsome Turkish guide, Yaman. Unable to put brake to her passion, Desi begins a passionate affair
Female sex tourism
Female sex tourism is travel by women, partially or fully for the purpose of having sex. The practice differs from male sex tourism in that women do not typically use the structures of the sex industry Female sex tourism is travel by women, partially or fully for the purpose of having sex. The...
with Yaman. They have sex in the tour bus and from then on Desideria takes advantage of every opportunity during the trip to escape into the arms of her lover. For the first time in her life, she has found sexual fulfillment. After two weeks, the trip is over. Yet, Yaman vows to love his Spanish worshiper forever and the two part ways.
Upon her return home, Desi can hardly concentrate, her thoughts are with Yaman. Her calm marital life has nothing in common with the torrid passion she found with her Turkish lover. She tries to contact him, but fails on her efforts. After a regular trip to the doctor, she learns that she is pregnant. Yet, it is not her husband's child, he is sterile. Desi is adamant to keep the baby in spite of her husband protest. Ramiro knows that he cannot be the father. She offers to divorce him, but, Ramiro agrees to support the child and the couple decides to stay together. Unfortunately, Desi’s son does not live long; the baby dies of high fever and convulsions. After the funeral, grieve stricken, Desi flees for Istanbul looking to forget the drama she is leaving behind and to be reunited with her lover.
Once in Turkey, she stars to search for Yaman, and she finds him in Capadocia. Yaman is happy to see her again and together they settle in his modest home in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
. They renew their torrid affair and are happy for sometime. Problems star to arise soon. One day an older woman arrives to the house with two children on her charge. She is Yaman’s mother and those are his children. Only then, Desi knows that he has been married before and had children; she also finds out that there have been other women in the house and Yaman’s life, before her.
When Desi goes to the Spanish embassy to inquire about her immigration status in Turkey, Paulina, a woman from the embassy, offers her advice and friendship. She later warns Desi about Yaman. Paulina knows about him and his reputation is not good. However, Desi strongly dismiss the unrequited advice.
Desi wants to have another baby after the one she lost, but once pregnant Yaman, in spite of her protest made her have an abortion. The procedure does not go well and Desi ends up unable to have further children.
When he is not working as a tourist guide, Yaman sells Turkish carpet
Turkish carpet
Turkish carpets come in distinct styles, from different regions of Turkey. Important differentiators between the types include the materials, construction and the patterns.-History:...
s at the bazaar in a family business with his brother. Both of them decide to force Desi to work for them. Besides selling carpets, she would have to provide sexual favors for customers and other carpet dealers. Astonished about this new revelations, Desi with the help of Paulina, flees to Spain.
Back in her country, Desi’s friend, Laura and her husband pick her up at the airport in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
and take her to a hotel, but she is adamant about the choices she has made and refuses further help from her friends. To try to see what it feels to be with another man, Desi has sex with Ivan, a man she has just met, but her failure to feel the same she feels with Yaman, makes her go back to him in Turkey.
Yaman is angry with her because she left and he beats her. She does not care, wanting only to be with him. Yaman accepts her once again, but their relationship turns even darker. Now, Desi willingly accepts to participate in Yaman’s dirty dealings and even have a sexual relationship behind his back, but Yaman’s keeps his sexual domination over her.
Desi helps Yaman to make amends with another carpet dealer that he has tried to deceive. After she sexually pleases the voyeuristic old man, he gives her a small gun as a gift.
Returning home that night, Desi finds Yaman having sex with a couple, Desi can not tolerate him having sex with another man. Unashamed, he drags them to a bar where a belly dancer
Belly dancer
A belly dancer is one who performs a belly dance. The phrase may also refer to:*"Belly Dancer" , a single by R&B singer Akon*"Belly Dancer" , a hip hop song*The Belly Dancer, a 2001 Turkish drama film...
is performing. During the dance, Yaman flirts with Desi and the other woman and Desi shoots him between the legs. Yaman falls to the floor badly hurt, but allows Desi to escape. He orders her to flee but never to return. Desi, carrying her bags, leaves Istanbul for good. A part of her has died there.
Cast
Originally, Victoria AbrilVictoria Abril
Victoria Abril is a Spanish film actress. She is best known to international audiences for her performance in the movie ¡Átame! by director Pedro Almodóvar....
, Vicente Aranda’s favorite actress, was going to start in the film, but she was unavailable having going to Hollywood to make Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson
Barry Levinson is an American screenwriter, film director, actor, and producer of film and television. His films include Good Morning, Vietnam, Sleepers and Rain Man.-Early life:...
’s Jimmy Hollywood
Jimmy Hollywood
Jimmy Hollywood is an American comedy film written and directed by Barry Levinson and starring Joe Pesci and Christian Slater.- Plot :Jimmy Alto is a failing actor living in Los Angeles. After increasing frustration with crime in the city Jimmy, along with his 'spaced-out' best friend William ,...
. The role of Desi was offered to Spanish singer and actress Ana Belén
Ana Belén
Ana Belén is the artistic name of María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, a Spanish actress and singer. She was born on 27 May 1951 in Madrid.- Biography :...
who is better known internationally as a singer, La Passión Turca is considered by many as her best movie role. Vicente Aranda remembers “ I was very happy, Anna seemed to me the right actress to play the role. Ana Belén and Vicente Aranda became good friends during filming and both remembered it fondly. They would work together again in Libertarias
Libertarias
Libertarias is a Spanish historical drama made in 1996. It was written and directed by Vicente Aranda.In 1936, Maria , a young nun is recruited by Pilar , a militant feminist, into an anarchist militia following the onset of the Spanish Civil War...
(1995).
Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface is a Franco-Greek actor who has had an international career in film and television, following many years in French theatre, notably as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company. His film credits include To Tama, Escape from L.A., La Pasión Turca, Vive La Mariée, Impromptu,...
plays the role of Yaman, the handsome Turkish tourist guide, whose sexual powers made Deisdera falls madly in love with him. Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface
Georges Corraface is a Franco-Greek actor who has had an international career in film and television, following many years in French theatre, notably as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company. His film credits include To Tama, Escape from L.A., La Pasión Turca, Vive La Mariée, Impromptu,...
is a French- Greek actor who has had an international
International
----International mostly means something that involves more than one country. The term international as a word means involvement of, interaction between or encompassing more than one nation, or generally beyond national boundaries...
career in film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
most notably in Escape from L.A.
Escape from L.A.
Escape From L.A. is a 1996 film directed by John Carpenter. The sequel to the action film Escape from New York, the film follows former war hero Snake Plissken, played by Kurt Russell...
and Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus: The Discovery
Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, a 1992 film directed by James Bond alumnus John Glen, was the last project developed by the father and son production team of Alexander and Ilya Salkind. It follows the events leading up to and including the voyage of Columbus to the New World in 1492...
. He was very happy working for the first time in Spanish. The story and the character of Yaman attracted him. A man he describes as sadly unable to love and hold that feeling. He gests bored and needs to twist the felling in a pervert way to keep the relationship alive.
Ramón Madaula, a Catalan actor, plays Ramiro, Desi’s husband. Sílvia Munt
Silvia Munt
Silvia Munt Quevedo, is a Spanish Catalan actress and film director. She has won two Goya Award, Best Actress for her role in Alas de mariposa, and Best Short Documentary, Lalia, written and directed by Munt...
, who won the Goya Award as best actress for her role in Alas de Mariposa
Alas de Mariposa
Alas de mariposa is a 1991 Spanish film written and directed by Juanma Bajo Ulloa.-Plot:A poor couple wants to have a boy but instead they get a girl. A boy is born afterwards but something terrible happens, which ruins the relationship between mother and daughter....
(1991), took the role of Laura, Desis’ friend. Loles León
Loles León
María Dolores León Rodríguez is a Spanish actress.She went to Madrid to start a career as an actress. She met Pedro Almodóvar during La Movida Madrileña. He offered her the roles she played in Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios and ¡Átame!...
, had the small role of a Spanish embassy employée, she has worked for Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar
Pedro Almodóvar Caballero is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Almodóvar is arguably the most successful and internationally known Spanish filmmaker of his generation. His films, marked by complex narratives, employ the codes of melodrama and use elements of pop culture, popular...
in Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! is a 1990 Spanish film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, a dark romantic comedy starring Antonio Banderas and Victoria Abril. The plot follows a recently released psychiatric patient who kidnaps an actress in order to make her fall in love with him...
and for Vicente Aranda in El Amante Bilingüe
El Amante Bilingüe
The Bilingual Lover is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Juan Marsé. It stars Imanol Arias, Ornella Muti and Loles León. The film is a grotesque drama with some elements of comedy...
(1993) and Libertarias
Libertarias
Libertarias is a Spanish historical drama made in 1996. It was written and directed by Vicente Aranda.In 1936, Maria , a young nun is recruited by Pilar , a militant feminist, into an anarchist militia following the onset of the Spanish Civil War...
(1996).
- Ana BelénAna BelénAna Belén is the artistic name of María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, a Spanish actress and singer. She was born on 27 May 1951 in Madrid.- Biography :...
(Desideria) - Georges CorrafaceGeorges CorrafaceGeorges Corraface is a Franco-Greek actor who has had an international career in film and television, following many years in French theatre, notably as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company. His film credits include To Tama, Escape from L.A., La Pasión Turca, Vive La Mariée, Impromptu,...
(Yaman) - Ramón Madaula (Ramiro)
- Silvya Munt (Laura)
- Helio Pedregal (Artuto)
- Blanca Apilanez (Felisa)
- Francis Lorenzo (Marcelo)
- Loles LeónLoles LeónMaría Dolores León Rodríguez is a Spanish actress.She went to Madrid to start a career as an actress. She met Pedro Almodóvar during La Movida Madrileña. He offered her the roles she played in Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios and ¡Átame!...
(Paulina)
Production
In 1994, Andrés Vicente Gómez, a Spanish film producer, had the idea to adapt to the big screen, the popular novel La Pasión Turca, written by Antonio GalaAntonio Gala
Antonio Gala Velasco is a Spanish poet, playwright, novelist and writer.Gala was born in Brazatortas, Ciudad Real , although he moved very soon to Córdoba and is widely considered an Andalusian....
. The year before he had produced Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
’s movie: El Amante Bilingüe
El Amante Bilingüe
The Bilingual Lover is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Juan Marsé. It stars Imanol Arias, Ornella Muti and Loles León. The film is a grotesque drama with some elements of comedy...
, a film adaptation of a novel written by Juan Marsé
Juan Marsé
Juan Marsé is a Spanish novelist, journalist and screenwriter, born in Barcelona on January 8, 1933 as Juan Faneca Roca.His mother died in childbirth, and he was soon adopted by the Marsé family. At age 14 he started to publish some of his writings in Insula magazine and in a cinema magazine while...
. El Amante Bilingüe
El Amante Bilingüe
The Bilingual Lover is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Juan Marsé. It stars Imanol Arias, Ornella Muti and Loles León. The film is a grotesque drama with some elements of comedy...
(1993) had been a critical and commercial disappointment; nevertheless, producer and director were eager to make another film together. Andrés Vicente Gómez , thought that if he had made a mistake with the previous film adaptation he now was sure Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
was the right director to adapt La Pasión Turca into a film. The producer had to convince Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala Velasco is a Spanish poet, playwright, novelist and writer.Gala was born in Brazatortas, Ciudad Real , although he moved very soon to Córdoba and is widely considered an Andalusian....
who originally would have wanted, Mario Camús to direct the film.
Aranda explains his reason to make La Pasión Turca. “ After making two risky films of little commercial success: El Amante Bilingüe
El Amante Bilingüe
The Bilingual Lover is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Juan Marsé. It stars Imanol Arias, Ornella Muti and Loles León. The film is a grotesque drama with some elements of comedy...
and Intruso
Intruso
Intruder is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda. It stars Victoria Abril, Imanol Arias and Antonio Valero. The film is a psychological thriller. A middle class woman torn between her love for her spouse and her ill ex-husband, both of them were her childhood friends...
(1993). I wanted to make a film that would find an audience, and it was like that.
In the process of adapting the novel to a feature film, there were disagreements between Aranda and Antonio Gala. Vicente Aranda remembers: “ When Gala read the script he said that it was like a tree without leaves. That did stick to my mind, because to think that a telegram has leaves is asking for too much, and a film script is like that.
Further disagreements aroused when Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
changed the end of the story.
In the novel, Desideria commits suicide, while in the film, she leaves Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
to nowhere. Aranda explains, “Gala understood that the story could only have ended in suicide. On the other hand, I am against suicide, I can’t help it. I argued that what it seemed to me indispensable, as thesis of the film, was that passion can destroy but it cannot be denied, and my solution eventually prevailed. I filmed two different endings and after several screenings, the producer decided to leave the one I had proposed. When the time came to release the film on DVD, I had the idea to include both endings. Now La Pasión Turca is often transmitted on Television, showing also the alternative ending.”
La Pasión Turca began to be filmed on May 16, 1994. It premiered in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on December 16, 1994. It was filmed in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
and Capadocia) and in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Ávila, and Sigüenza
Sigüenza
Sigüenza is a city in the province of Guadalajara in Spain.-History:The site of the ancient Segontia of the Celtiberian Arevaci, now called Villavieja , is half a league distant from the present Sigüenza...
) with a budget of 360 millions pesetas.
Vicente Aranda remembers production in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
fondly “The shooting in Istanbul was very pleasant for all. We were in a good hotel, everything was very cheap and we used to go shopping to that wonderful place that is the Great Bazaar…We were accused of using stereotypes. What was Turkey for us? Basically, belly dancers. In fact, something similar happens in Spain when foreign directors come here to make films. Showing Barcelona, they present a mule carrying pitchers led by an old man in black. I began to reflect in the unavoidable convenience to used stereotypes as synthesis of element within the narrative.
The character of Desideria Oilván was based on a real woman even though Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala
Antonio Gala Velasco is a Spanish poet, playwright, novelist and writer.Gala was born in Brazatortas, Ciudad Real , although he moved very soon to Córdoba and is widely considered an Andalusian....
vehemently denied it. She was a woman from a well off family from Lleida
Lleida
Lleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
. She was married and during a holyday in Turkey fell in love with a local man, leaving everything for him. It was revealed to the film crew, during shooting in the Grand Bazaar, that the real Desideria had a store there selling carpets. In front of the store she had a Spanish flag and a sign Catalan is spoken here. Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
recalls that out of courtesy, he tried to inform her that a film, slightly based on her life, was being made, but she declined any contact with them. The story shown, both in the book and in the film, is of course very different than the real one, and the real Desidera enjoyed a happy life with the Turkish man she married.
Themes
The film is an erotic drama, an exploration of female sexual desire, a theme that Vicente ArandaVicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
explored again with La Mirada del Otro
La Mirada del Otro
The Naked Eye is a 1998 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Fernando G. Delgado. It stars Laura Morante, Miguel Ángel García and José Coronado. The film is an erotic psychodrama, an exploration of female sexual desire...
(1998) but not as successfully. The destructive power of uncontrollable passion and sexual desire also appeared as theme in Aranda’s films: Amantes (1991), Intruso
Intruso
Intruder is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda. It stars Victoria Abril, Imanol Arias and Antonio Valero. The film is a psychological thriller. A middle class woman torn between her love for her spouse and her ill ex-husband, both of them were her childhood friends...
(1993) and Celos
Celos
Jealousy is a 1999 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda. It stars Daniel Giménez Cacho, Aitana Sanchez-Gijón, Maria Botto and Luis Tosar.-Plot:...
(1999).
La Pasión Turca & other films
In essence, La Pasión Turca is similar to Aranda’s later film La Mirada del OtroLa Mirada del Otro
The Naked Eye is a 1998 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Fernando G. Delgado. It stars Laura Morante, Miguel Ángel García and José Coronado. The film is an erotic psychodrama, an exploration of female sexual desire...
(1998), both films focus on an independent-minded woman's search for sexual fulfillment, which borders on obsession - though the details, obviously, are different. Like Laura Morante
Laura Morante
Laura Morante is an Italian film actress.She was born in Santa Fiora, province of Grosseto , and is the niece of renowned Italian novelist Elsa Morante.-Career:...
in the later film, Ana Belén here delivers a committed central performance. La Pasión Turca slightly resembles,Shirley Valentine
Shirley Valentine
Shirley Valentine is a one-character play by Willy Russell. Taking the form of a monologue by a middle-aged, working class Liverpool housewife, it focuses on her life before and after a transforming holiday abroad.-Plot:...
(1989), a play adapted into a film, in which a middle-aged, working class, housewife life’s is transformed after a holiday abroad.
Reception
The film had its premiered in December 1994 and was a great commercial success 1.200.000 tickets were sold in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
alone and the film made 625 million pesetas at the box office.
Producer, Andres Vicente Gomez recalls the success of the film “I think Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
made a great movie, with the limitation force upon him with a melodramatic novel. He resolved those problems brilliantly. The actors were great, the story was intriguing and Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda
Vicente Aranda , is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer.Due to his refined and personal style, he is one of the most renowned Spanish filmmakers. He started as a founded member of the Barcelona School of Film and became known for bringing contemporary Spanish novels to life on the...
took advantage of the location and all the resources he was provided with. La Pasión Turca was a great success and I was very pleased. All the money I have lost with El Amante Bilingüe
El Amante Bilingüe
The Bilingual Lover is a 1993 Spanish film, written and directed by Vicente Aranda adapted from a novel by Juan Marsé. It stars Imanol Arias, Ornella Muti and Loles León. The film is a grotesque drama with some elements of comedy...
, I made back with this film”.
Among critics, La Pasión Turca has had its fare share of (outspoken) critics and admirers. The film was highly controversial not only for it’s many erotic scenes but for having the director changed the end of the film from was it was on the original novel.
Awards and nominations
- Two Goya AwardsGoya AwardsThe Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
: Best Music Score (Jose Nieto) and Best Production Supervision (Jose Luis Escolar) (1995). - ADIRCAE Award – Best Actress (Ana BelénAna BelénAna Belén is the artistic name of María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, a Spanish actress and singer. She was born on 27 May 1951 in Madrid.- Biography :...
) 1995 - Saint Jordi Awards – Best supporting Actress Silvya Munt (1995)
- Fotogramas de Plata: Best Actress (Ana BelénAna BelénAna Belén is the artistic name of María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, a Spanish actress and singer. She was born on 27 May 1951 in Madrid.- Biography :...
) 1995 - Twelve nominations to the Goya AwardsGoya AwardsThe Goya Awards, known in Spanish as los Premios Goya, are Spain's main national film awards, considered by many in Spain, and internationally, to be the Spanish equivalent of the American Academy Awards....
: Best Film, Director, Lead Actress, Supporting Actress, Score, Cinematography, Make up, Production Design, Sound, Adapted Screenplay, Costume Design and Production Supervision.
Home media
La Pasión Turca has been released on Region 2 in a double DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
set. The film appears on disc 1 while all of the extras are on disc 2. Aside from a theatrical trailer, a TV spot, a gallery of deleted scenes (in Spanish only), photo gallery, filmographies, making of (in Spanish only), there is also an alternate ending (also in Spanish only) which reinstates the original ending by Aranda reflecting the manner in which the book La Pasión Turca is based upon ends.