Alegria

(Alegría)
Violeta Salama | Drama, Comedy, Fiction

2021 | 104 minutes | Spain

A story of reconciliation told by a Jewish woman, a Muslim, and a Christian living in Morocco.

Synopsis

Alegría’s life shifts profoundly upon discovering that her orthodox Jewish brother insists on holding his daughter’s wedding in Melilla. Guided by Dunia, her Arab housekeeper, and Marian, her Christian confidante, Alegría embarks on a journey to connect with her roots while assisting her niece, Yael, in navigating womanhood within a highly conservative male-dominated environment.

Renowned Mexican actress Cecilia Suárez (The House of Flowers, 3 Caminos) takes the lead, infusing the film with her charisma and impeccable comedic timing, amidst a backdrop of familial tumult and conflicting traditions.

Alegría is also about Melilla, an autonomous, multicultural Spanish city on Africa’s north coast, where Jews, Muslims, and Christians mix and mingle and come together to make the wedding happen. It is a gorgeous evocation of a fascinating and beautiful corner of the world not often seen on-screen.

Reviews

“A comedy with an optimistic message about multiculturalism and a sense of identity, about the possibility of reconciliation, cohabitation and harmony, despite the differences that separate us.” – Júlia Olmo, Cineeuropa

“Violeta Salama’s warm and sensitive feature debut, Alegría, is exactly the kind of film you look for at a Jewish Film Festival: a travelogue and a story of culture, religion, and family.” — Alex Heeney, Seventh Row

“First element to highlight: shown as it is shown here, with its charm, but also its contradictions, Melilla has never been seen in Spanish cinema as it is in Alegría, a powerful stroke of a new, promising filmmaker, Violeta Salama. Second element: this is a film made from a feminine sensibility.” — Mirito Torreiro, Fotogramas

“The women of Alegría paint a mural of strength, love, courage, compassion and trust, and at last show their bond is unbounded, finding the self in selflessness.” — JD Linville, Variety

Citation
Main credits

Salama, Violeta (film director)
Salama, Violeta (screenwriter)
Sánchez, Isa (screenwriter)
Nieto, Clara (film producer)
González-Quevedo, Olmo Figueredo (film producer)
Suárez, Cecilia (actor)
Manzanares, Laia (actor)
Perles, Sarah (actor)

Other credits

Cinematography, Pau Esteve Birba; editing, José M. G. Moyano; music, Javier Limón.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
Alegría,Alegria,Spain,drama,comedy,Spain,Violeta ,Cecilia Suárez,Laia Manzanares Salama,Sarah Perles,Mara Guill,Leonardo Sbaraglia,Morocco,Melilla,cultures,religion,religions,Jewish,jews,muslim,christian,catholic,woman,women,female director,diaspora,Jewish diasporic community,wedding,family,multiculturality,culture,identity,identity politics,culture wars,left wing,right wing,intersectionality,identity groups,civilization,literacy,humanism,cancel culture,online culture,cultural revolution,cultural diffusion,culture shock,popular culture,pop culture,material culture,cultural capital,cultural assimilation ,religion,spirituality,organized religion,soul,spiritual beliefs,religious beliefs,belief systems,branches of religion,religious sects,sects,gods and goddesses,monotheism,theism,pantheism,polytheism,spiritual awakening,family,kin,fellowship,household,immediate family,extended family,multigenerational family,multigenerational household,kinfolk,family tree,genealogy,nuclear family,modern family,family tree,women,womanhood,gender,girl,girlhood,mother,motherhood,female,cis woman,cis female,trans woman,trans female,women’s rights,women’s issues,lady,ladies,gentlewoman,madame,miss,missus,mrs.,dame,damsel,ingenue,lass,maid,maiden,belle,gal,ladyfriend,girlfriend,dear,darling,widow,matron,dowager,gender,gender equality,gender pay gap,women’s liberation,women’s rights,racism,discrimination,prejudice,ethnicity,ethnic,race studies,ethnic studies,racist,racial sensitivity,bias,prejudice,racial prejudice,ethnic prejudice,genetics,hereditary,culture,ethnic culture,ethnology,ethnography,ethnic sensitivity,economics,social class,money,capital,capitalism,class,economy,prejudice,intersectionality,inequality,poverty,income gap,wage gap,class warfare,elitism,snobbery,bourgeois,poverty,upper class,middle class,lower class,nouveau riche,sociology,anthropology,psychology,sociological,sociological perspectives,conflict theory,human conflicts,sociological thinking,conflict perspective,topics in sociology,sociology topics,sociology studies,social studies,people and cultures,human relations,human relationships,cultural studies,culture studies ,iberian studies,iberian peninsula,mediterranean,andorra,spain,portugal,andorra studies,spanish studies,portuguese studies,migration studies,migrant studies,immigration studies,refugee studies,diaspora studies,resettlement studies,settlement studies,migration,migrant,immigration,refugee,diaspora,resettlement,settlement,refugees,international migration,continental migration,resettling,settlers,settler,migrant,migrant studies,first generation immigrant,first generation immigration,new americans,new spaniards; "Alegria"; Pragda Films
Clips
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Festivals

Sephardi Jewish Film Festival - Pomegranate Award for Rising Star; FICAL Almería International Film Festival - Best Director; Carmen Awards - Best Art Direction; Toronto Jewish Film Festival; Guadalajara International Film Festival; Seville European Film Festival; Málaga Film Festival

DIRECTOR: Violeta Salama

NATIONALITY: Spain

YEAR: 2021

GENRE: Drama, Comedy, Fiction

LANGUAGE: Spanish; Other languages

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School, College, Adult

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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