Carol's Journey

Born and raised in the U.S., Carol is thrown into the unknown culture of the foreign country, Spain.  She is a free spirited, independent, young girl, and shows this right off the bat with her non-traditional “tom-boyish” outfits.  She refuses to conform to the traditional feminine attire, even to the extent of refusing to wear a dress at her first communion.  Her American background produced a girl who is comfortable asserting herself.  This causes her to have conflicts with others in Spain, including her aunt as when she ignored her curfew and told her off when being reprimanded.  Another example of this conflict is the relentless fight she had with her friends to recover her stolen hat. 

            When Franco won the Spanish Civil War, he dissolved the Spanish parliament and established a right wing authoritarian regime.  Under this regime he suppressed those who had descendent views through censorship and coercion.  He even used concentration camps and death sentences.  Unfortunately because many experienced economic growth and improvements in quality of living under this regime, they overlooked any human rights abuses that were rampantly occurring.  One such injustice was when Carol’s dad and boyfriend were hunted down and the boyfriend ended up being killed.  Despite all of the conflicts and animosities Carol has adjusting to the culture of Spain, she maintains her own spirit and identity throughout the film. 

Beth Niehaus 

Volver

     In many of the films we have viewed, the women experience great hardships. This film is no exception. Raimunda grew up feeling unloved and abandoned by her mother and was sexually abused by her father, bearing his child and living the lie that her own child was her sister. She then was in a less than desirable marriage, having to work several jobs to support her family.  Her husband was killed at the hands of her daughter, while defending herself from him, and Raimunda mustered up the strength, physically and emotionally, to cover up the murder and carry on. She learned at a young age to be determined and self reliant. These traits certainly came in handy throughout her life.
     One superstitious belief that was repeated through the movie was that of the "east wind", which was blamed for driving everyone crazy. Another example was their belief in spirits. The whole village believed Augustine's spirit had come back and had taken care of Raimunda's Aunt until her death. I even was believing it was her spirit until she admits other wise. This film exemplifies the strength and courage of women in their pursuit of overcoming tragedy.

Beth Niehaus

Entre Nos

Mariana finds herself in a very difficult position when her husband abandons her. She is an illegal immigrant, only being in the U.S. a couple weeks, when he deserts her and her two children. She has no job, no connections, no skills, and doesn’t even speak English. She experiences a vast array of emotions. She goes from anger that he would be so selfish to follow his own whims without regard for the welfare of his family, to hope and anxiousness as she waits for him to call and send for them. She then feels hostility toward him as the reality sets in that he has deserted them. She was very courageous for the sake of her children but the depression, despair, and helplessness that she felt spilled out when her children were asleep. She was determined though and was willing to do anything to survive, even pick through garbage to find aluminum to recycle for cash. Her children suffered greatly as they walked from dawn to dusk, were often sleep deprived, dirty, and hungry. The thing that impressed me was how tolerant they were. They never complained and actually became empowered, as when her son collected cans on his own when she was ill, proudly bringing her back money and food. Their strength and determination was exemplified when he insists they complete their work before eating, despite the fact that they were exhausted and starving. The saying, “What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger” comes to mind when I think about what Mariana and her kids went through. This experience strengthened them as individuals and as a family unit. They equally suffered, made sacrifices, and supported each other. It’s no wonder they all overcame this awful situation and led prosperous and successful lives.

 Beth Niehaus

The Official Story

This was a very sad movie about the anguish an adoptive mother feels when confronted with the fact that the birth mother of her child had unwillingly lost her child. She seemed at first oblivious to the fact that this was possible. It was as though she was living with blinders on and disconnected herself from the realities of the world around her. It was only once events started occurring in her own life that she could no longer avoid seeing what was going on in the world around her. One such event is when her friend Anna, who was captured and tortured, blatantly told Alicia babies were being taken from their mothers in captivity. Another is when the students in her history class posted current event clippings related to these issues. Thirdly was when she witnessed protests in the plaza, where the parents of these missing young adults are pleading for the release of their children and grandchildren. She became obsessed with the need to know if her daughter, Abby, was one of these babies and struggled greatly with the thought of it being true. It wasn't until she met Abby's biological grandmother and heard the personal story of the plight of her family and saw the pictures of Abby's birth mother and father that she began to reconcile with this fact. She began to realize that despite the heartache and upheaval that would occur in her life, she must do what is morally right. It was obvious her husband, who was  morally corrupt, did not agree and treated her violently when she tried to talk to him regarding this. Being an adoptive mother myself, I can only imagine the pain she experienced as she realized she had been deceived and her happy family was nothing but an illusion.