Not even Miloš Forman always got lucky. His 1989 film, Valmont, came at the wrong time. Distributors thought that the film wasn't capable of competing on the market with another film of the same genre, the already released Dangerous Liaisons. Goya's Ghosts also arrived at a bad time. In 2006, the global situation wasn't dire enough for anybody to be truly spooked by the phantoms of total dictatorship. Most people interpreted the film as the old-fashioned, ageing master - now 74 years old - looking back the dictatorship that he himself lived under, and a kind of reflection on the mission of the artist.
Though the plot is somewhat more complicated than that, and despite the title, it is not so much about the painter than the glories and failures of Father Lorenzo, played by Javier Bardem. His story is a string of betrayals and twists and turns. He is the mover of the drama, if you will. And though it may seem that the changes in the dictatorship and the accompanying immeasurable physical and mental sacrifices are only depicted in the background, the structure of the film is actually far more precise than that. The people and the military are far from decorative here. Powers built on informers, whistleblowers and fear celebrate death and turn people into mobs. And in keeping with the fate of the artist, even here Forman doesn't explain or seek a (self) justification. Artists work through their art. And pay for it too. And what is this artist? A harlot, a vessal, a preserver of the era, a tool to be used by the industries of power, or a leech that fastens on to the wounds of the world? Our dear viewer can ponder on that question as they enjoy the film.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest