Te doy mis ojos (2003) Reviews

• There is no better film than this one on this topic of domestic violence.

  Nzup2005-04-04

  There are for sure many other films dealing with domestic violence, but I bet no one is better than this one. This is something that is said to happen quite often in Spain and the movie was shot in order to sensitize people for this issue and to bring to talk about it. It is the story of an ill jealous man, full of complex of inferiority, terrorizing his wife and son. I loved the love scene between both, where he makes her repeat that she gives all her body to him (Te doy mis ojos, te doy mi boca etc.). It shows perfectly the mental state of the husband who sees his wife as his property. This was as well an excellent performance of Laia Marull and Luis Tosar.

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• excellent movie

  aruiviejo2005-03-23

  This is an excellent movie that understands the complexity of domestic violence. I am an advocate for survivors of domestic violence and we know that partner abuse is much more than a black eye. During the movie there is only one episode of physical violence, however we can observe throughout the movie the dynamics of power and control by the husband, through emotional, verbal, and other types of abuse. The person who wrote the previous message shows a complete lack of understanding about the impact that domestic violence has on the victim, why it is so difficult to break with cycle, the challenges that women face when they try to leave (including the fear of retaliation). Don't forget that 75% of women killed by their partners were murdered after they left the relationship. By leaving, women are taking a great risk. I think this movie is very realistic and the actors do a great job. I highly recommend it.

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• A standing ovation

  khatcher-22003-12-03

  At the rate of more than one a week we have on our headlines a case of a woman being killed by her husband, ex-husband, partner or just simply lover, and even, very occasionally vice-versa. The fact that most of these crimes are committed in a very defined area of Spain is something which suggests the sociologists should be working flat out in an attempt to inform the politicians why this is happening - not that our elected representatives are likely to do anything to remedy the situation. Already, this year alone, 66 Spanish women have been beaten and killed by their partners in life. The other day I read that a lady judge had quashed a case of wife-battering because 'it was only an isolated case without continuity', or words to that effect. A lady judge .........! Evidently our legal and social systems need a drastic overhaul. And that means trying to inject a goodly dosis of common sense in both systems. The Icíar Bollaín-Santiago García de Leániz tandem, forming Iguana Films, has clearly established that human contact stories are their main motivation, as in 'Flores de Otro Mundo' (qv); and in 'Te Doy Mis Ojos' they do not simply follow the line, but improve on it explosively. Somewhat akin to better known films by the British directors Ken Loach and David Lynch, basically for the sociological aspects in themselves, but clearly hallmarked as inherently Spanish in content and realisation, as is the case with Fernando León de Aranoa's 'Los Lunes al Sol' (qv), to name but one recent example of a film with a real human and sociological content, 'Te Doy Mis Ojos' competes with the best of the genre. With this new film, the 'Iguana' tandem fall back on Luis Tosar again, and present us with Laia Marull. This actress had not come to my attention previously, as she seems to have done things for film or TV mostly confined to her native Catalonia. A welcome presence is Rosa María Sardà who has often pleased me with her interpretations in several productions. (Why she has to make silly advertisements for TV is totally beyond me). To say that Laia Marull in this film is magnificent is somewhat understating the reality: her performance is so close to absolute perfection, pure real emotions, that even the muscles in her cheeks and neck portray her feelings, as you will rarely ever see in any actress anywhere, however many Oscars they may have stacked away in their wardrobes, exhibited in gilt-framed glass cabinets, or just simply shoved in a corner behind the salt-pot in the kitchen. Laia Marull carries out a 'tour de force' which leaves you open-mouthed in admiration: her reading of the part is superb, such that the spectator is just simply left spell-bound. I thought this kind of acting was only possible in the best Russian tradition, or, if you push me, in some better British productions. And Luis Tosar is not far behind. Without overplaying his difficult role of a husband, who is, to say the least, a bit off his rocker, and has to mistreat his wife and at the same time maintain the explicit idea that he is just about as sane as you, I, or anybody else, and thus is capable of tenderness, might seem to be asking any actor to overstretch his possibilities. If Luis Tosar was good - very good - in 'Los Lunes al Sol', here in 'Te Doy Mis Ojos' he was even better. These two, then, worked to make this film, evidencing good chemistry, but especially with the film's director, Icíar Bollaín. The result is electrifying, passionate, growling to the most abysmal depths, but reaching great heights in building upon human emotions - real emotions and feelings, not the canned ready-made ephimeral substantiations served up as if for dinner in a four-star restaurant. The film is architecturally built on a very serious, tragic and dramatic situation; however, there are those lighter moments which can even produce a few teary-eyed guffaws. This is another point where the film scores highly: the timing is absolutely brilliant. In the kids' birthday party there is a brief, grim scene, suddenly interrupted by the appearance of an aunt holding aloft the candled birthday cake with that typically silly smiling grin of any ordinary woman present at such festivities, but with such perfect synchronisation that the audience barely staggers out of the charged tense atmosphere and into the more frivolous, before being thrown back into the grimmer parts of the story-line which pervades the film. Because it is the stark reality of thousands of married women in Spain that is the basis of the film: badly- treated, beaten and abused, barely five per cent ever get to a police-station or to a court of law. This is the message in this hard, direct film that delves deeply into real human situations which cannot - should not - be simply left in the statistics of bureaucratic ledgers, as happens these days. 'Te Doy Mis Ojos' is a beautiful, tragic, moving real-life story; if in itself it must rank among the best seven or eight Spanish films I have ever seen - and believe me I have seen many - there is something which towers above the film itself - Laia Marull has achieved something nearing the impossible; and Icíar Bollaín has aided and abetted her to produce a final result that can only drive you at the end to give this film a standing ovation.

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• A cinematic milestone of rare beauty and insight in dealing with the most unsavoury of topics

  Chris_Docker2004-08-22

  Take My Eyes is about the love of one couple, their attempts to rebuild their relationship, and the struggles of each of them to deal with what comes to be seen as an illness of the husband – a tendency to violence that results in severe domestic abuse. The film is all the more powerful because the violence is never shown on screen – what we see is the fear, shame and embarrassment of the wife, Pilar, the romantic dream she still cherishes, the moments of poetic tenderness they share, the humanising attempts of the husband Antonio to overcome his violent tendencies through therapy. The one scene of love-making is amongst the tenderest, most beautiful and most realistic ever seen on film; the expression of romantic, positive emotion between them is something many couples would jump at the chance to regain. They let us see why it is hard for someone in her position to admit the man she loves is not only not perfect but a violent brute; why it is embarrassing for her when her soon-to-be-married sister brings it up. The common conception of domestic violence rests too simplistically with the physical act – it fails to encompass the emotional violence and trauma, the complexity of the situation when the woman is still deeply ‘in love' and cherishes a hope that her partner will ‘change'. At the UK premiere of this film in the Edinburgh Internal Film Festival, Writer-Director Icíar Bollaín explained that it was her fascination with why so many women stay with abusive husbands (the average is ten years) that led her to research the subject. She found it was far more complex than expected. What makes Take My Eyes so valuable as a cinematic milestone is that it not only is a masterpiece of modern cinema, but as a contribution to social awareness it conveys far more than any government leaflet could. Everyone at some point in their life, if not directly involved in a situation of domestic abuse, is likely to know somebody that is affected – but what can be done? Painting the scene in black and white and simply strongly telling the woman to leave is likely to evoke a very negative response – which happens to Pilar's sister – and not achieve the desired result. Through its heartbreakingly realistic and characters, the film works through various options in an enlightening way, but Take My Eyes never preaches. The fact that it is so in touch with its subject matter is, cinematically, merely icing on the cake – this is a drama that keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout, evoking a total audience commitment. Unlike most films dealing with abuse it is also most definitely not kitchen sink drama – so much so that when Antonio's temper flares ever so slightly we flinch – not just because we empathise with Pilar, for whom a sudden movement brings terrifying, paralysing echo of a possible beating, but because it seems so intrusive, so out of place in a film of such gentle wonder. But that great art can have such potential for social impact and change is something for cinema, in this case, to feel justly proud. (Major plot spoilers follow – please read only after seeing the film to discuss analysis of the issues) That Antonio is portrayed with understanding helps us to understand the complexity of the dilemma that Pilar faces – she appreciates his genuine efforts to change, the exercises his therapist gives him. Most importantly, it helps explain for us why she not only loves him but cherishes a hope that the tender love they have felt for each other will not only return but that the violent spells will cease. Of course they don't. Asked about the ending, Icíar Bollaín explained that something that emerged from the research that went into making the film was that it is only when the woman *gives up hope* that the man will change that she can begin to rebuild her life. While a shred of hope remains, she, also, remains locked in the relationship that is destroying her. In the movie, Pilar learns that she has an ability to explain great paintings in the art gallery (where she has obtained work as a volunteer cashier) in a way that captures people's imagination - and is eventually offered a job. In a particularly humiliating scene (that leaves no physical bruises), Antonio ensures she is unable to get to the interview. He has broken the last thing within her, a new spark of well-placed faith in herself to do something nice. In that act he has broken everything inside her. She goes to the police station to report the attack but realises she has nothing that the police would be able to take seriously. She walks away – and also walks away from any hope that Antonio can change. She knows she does not love him any more and never will. She tells him, calmly – it is simply a fact – even when he threatens and seems to attempt suicide to make her stay - and is finally able to leave him permanently. Even after seeing the film it is so easy to draw simplistic solutions to the problem of domestic abuse, but the film invites us to consider them more fully, from the full emotional perspective of the victim (which also includes seeing things from the point of view of the perpetrator). The therapy seems to be patchwork at best. The woman has to decide to leave him. Once she has given up hope that he will change, the other things in her life that seemed beyond hope often repair themselves. Of course, if the woman can see the obsessive ‘love' with associated violence early enough she can just walk at the first manifestation, before she becomes more deeply entangled emotionally. And the abusers – is there no hope for them? In one sense, perhaps we don't care – in another (inasmuch as it is good to try and help such people stop being abusive), the advice is that at the first sign of anger such a person should also walk – walk well away. It may be that a particular type of personality triggers the anger – if so, it is not a sign of love but of a person *that that person who is tempted to anger* should avoid. We can only give love in a relationship where it is possible to give and receive without overriding hurt. ‘Take My Eyes' say Pilar and Antonio to each other as a symbolic gift, pledging parts of their body to each other in moments of exquisite gentleness. ‘Take My Eyes' says Icíar Bollaín, offering us her insights into the horrific, prevalent and needing-to-be-uncovered-and-addressed problem of domestic violence – through the medium of film, through this dramatisation, see into what it is really like, take the understanding. The movie will sweep you away with its beautiful Italian backdrops, its bringing to life of the paintings of the Great Masters, but mostly it will sweep you away with its insights into the depth and complexity of the human spirit, without ever dodging the issues.

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• Domestic violence

  jotix1002006-03-22

  Antonio, the husband of the story, is a coward. Like other men that batter their wives, he is a man that offers no redeeming qualities. Like other men in his position, Antonio vents his frustration on Pilar, a woman that has kept quiet about the abuse she receives from her husband. Antonio, as well as some of the men like him, will not change, because basically, they are too far gone to see the damage they are causing to their wives and to their families. Antonio is the kind of man who never apologizes for the damage he has done to Pilar, and their son. As the film opens, Pilar is seen packing a few necessities, as she gets her son ready to go to Ana, her sister. Ana evidently has seen through her brother-in-law, but until this point, she has no reason to believe any foul play being done to her sister; Pilar is a mess. With Ana's help, Pilar gets a job as a substitute in a museum in Toledo. It's there, with the help of the other women that work there, that she begins to see she has a calling for becoming a museum guide. She has a passion for exploring the mysteries behind some of the paintings in the museum. Antonio, who keeps turning up to get Pilar to go back home, begins attending a group session therapy directed at men who have his same problem. When Pilar thinks she is seeing a change in her husband, she consents in going back with Antonio. Unfortunately, she realizes the problems within her husband will never change. Like Nora, in "The Doll's House", Pilar has the guts to leave her husband, her situation and her life as a bright future awaits her when she goes to Madrid. Iciar Bollain, the talented director of this film, shows she really understands what happens to a battered woman who is terrified to go to the authorities to report the abuse. What has started as physical beatings, turns into mental abuse as Antonio doesn't understand the harm he inflicts on his family. Laia Marull plays Pilar with perfect restrain. Ms. Marull's Pilar is typical of a woman whose life has been derailed by a bully who can only think of the sexual aspect of the relationship and never has a meaningful conversation with her. Luis Tosar is equally up to the challenge with his Antonio, the brutish man who will hit his woman at whatever he thinks is a provocation. Candela Pena makes a valuable contribution as Ana, the sisters that dares to confront her sister, and her mother. Rosa Maria Sarda plays Aurora, the mother, who we get to believe has been an abused wife, herself. "Take my Eyes" is a powerful drama that questions what others don't. Iciar Bollain is to be commended for bringing it to the screen.

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