The Last Supper (1976 film)
The Last Supper (Spanish: La última cena) a 1976 Cuban historical film directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea, produced by the Instituto Cubano del Arte y la Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC) and starring Nelson Villagra as the Count.[1]
The Last Supper | |
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Directed by | Tomás Gutiérrez Alea |
Screenplay by | Tomás González María Eugenia Haya Tomás Gutiérrez Alea |
Produced by | ICAIC |
Starring | Nelson Villagra Silvano Rey Jose Antonio Rodriguez Luns Alberto Garcia Samuel Claxton Mario Balmaseda |
Cinematography | Mario García Joya |
Edited by | Nelson Rodríguez |
Music by | Leo Brouwer |
Release dates | December 1976 (Spain) October 1977 (USA) November 1977 (Cuba) |
Running time | 120 mins |
Country | Cuba |
Language | Spanish |
Synopsis
The film tells the story of a pious Havana plantation owner in the 1790s, during Cuba's Spanish colonial period. The plantation owner decides to recreate the Biblical Last Supper using twelve of the slaves working in his sugarcane fields, hoping to thus teach the slaves about Christianity.
In a misguided attempt to enlighten his African-originating slaves, a Count invites twelve of them to a dinner on Maundy Thursday in a re-enactment of the Last Supper with himself as Christ.[2] Whilst they eat and drink, he also feeds them religious rhetoric and attempts to instruct them in the workings of Christianity. He promises them a day off for the following Good Friday and commits to freeing one of the slaves. However, when these promises are not held up the next day, the slaves rebel. The slaves are then hunted down and killed by their master, except one who escapes.[1][3]
References
- "The Last Supper (1976) Film: 'The Last Supper,' A Parable From Cuba:Politics and Religion, New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-05-12.
- "An analysis of Post-Revolutionary Cuba through the eyes of Tomás Gutiérrez Álea's "LA ÚLTIMA CENA" (2004)". 14 November 2012. Retrieved November 9, 2013.
- "THE LAST SUPPER (LA ULTIMA CENA), BBC Four: Film & Drama". Retrieved 2011-05-12.