Él (1953) Review: The Good, The Bad & How to Watch

 

 Él (1953) Review: The Good, The Bad & How to Watch 

Spanish Film, Drama, Romance
English title: This Strange Passion

Cannes Film Festival, 1953- Official Selection
Locarno International Film Festival, 1960- Official selection
Viennale, 2015- Official Selection

In the surreal and brilliant filmography of director Luis Buñuel, few pictures dissect the dark side of obsession quite like Él (also known as This Strange Passion). Released in 1953 during Buñuel’s prolific Mexican period, this psychological thriller takes a terrifying, deeply intimate look at jealousy, religious hypocrisy, and the fragile nature of the human ego. Decades after its initial release, it remains one of the most haunting and accurate character studies of paranoia ever put on screen. More on Wikipedia or Mubi

Paranoia, Passion, and Madness: Luis Buñuel’s Él (1953) 

The story follows Francisco Galván, a wealthy, deeply pious, and aristocratic bachelor played with chilling perfection by Arturo de Córdova. Francisco seems to be the ideal gentleman until he falls obsessively in love with Gloria, a beautiful woman engaged to his friend. After winning her over and marrying her, the pristine facade instantly shatters. On their wedding night, Francisco’s overwhelming insecurity metastasizes into extreme jealousy. What begins as obsessive possession rapidly devolves into full-blown madness, as he accuses Gloria of infidelity and turns their lavish home into a psychological prison.

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What sets Él apart from standard marital melodramas is Buñuel’s surgical ability to merge dark, razor-sharp humor with genuine horror. Rather than painting Francisco as a simple movie monster, the film invites us directly into his twisted logic. We see the world through his paranoid eyes, where an innocent whisper in a church aisle becomes a conspiracy, and a keyhole becomes the center of the universe. Delia Garcés delivers a deeply moving performance as Gloria, perfectly capturing the terror and isolation of a woman trapped in an abusive, escalating nightmare while society turns a blind eye.

Interestingly, legendary psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan famously praised the film for its flawless clinical depiction of paranoia. Yet beyond its psychological accuracy, the movie stands as a masterclass in cinematic suspense and dark satire. Buñuel mercilessly skewers the rigid morality of high society and religious dogma, showing how pristine external appearances can hide absolute chaos. For fans of classic cinema and psychological thrillers, Él remains an unforgettable journey into the darkest corners of the human mind.

What Makes It Great

The defining strength of the film is its astonishingly accurate depiction of psychological deterioration. Long before modern cinema routinely tackled complex mental health topics, Buñuel created a terrifyingly precise portrait of delusional jealousy and paranoia.

Arturo de Córdova gives a career-defining performance as Francisco. He balances refined aristocratic charm with sudden, terrifying shifts into manic madness, making the character’s descent feel both shocking and completely believable.

Buñuel’s direction is equally brilliant. He blends subtle surrealist touches with dark, satirical humor, mocking high-society hypocrisy and religious rigidness without ever undermining the genuine suspense. The infamous church bell tower scene and the harrowing hallway sequences remain absolute masterclasses in cinematic tension and spatial claustrophobia.

Where It Struggles

For all its psychological genius, the film still carries the stylistic markers of 1950s Mexican melodrama. Audience members who are not accustomed to the heightened, somewhat theatrical acting style of the era might find certain supporting performances and dramatic cues a bit exaggerated.

Additionally, the film suffers from minor pacing issues in its second act. As Francisco’s delusions repeat and escalate, the narrative loop can feel slightly repetitive before reaching its dramatic breaking point. The low-budget studio sets and straightforward camera work—while functional—also lack the visual grandiosity found in some of Buñuel's later, bigger-budget European works.
English subtitles