A grandiloquent and tumultuous melodrama with the best stars of the Fifities. In Rome, the sculptor Leonardo Alfieri (José Mª Seoane) hires an attractive dancer called Imperia (María Félix) to make a sculpture that he hopes will be his masterpiece. The statue causes a sensation throughout the country due to her nakedness , causing a real scandal and draws the attention of the egoistic Prince Florencio (Manolo Fábregas) , heir to the Preslavian throne who'll stop at nothing to get the kingdom . Ultimately , the beautiful woman , dazzled by the possibility of leaving poverty behind , abandons everything, including her own daughter (Rosa Maria Salgado) . Things go wrong when the population begins gossiping the affaire . Along the way , Imperio meets another prince named Miguel (Rafael Durán) , and she becomes involved into a conspiracy , and finally a sad tragedy takes place .
An enjoyable Spanish film with intense drama , intrigue , passion , tragic events and thrilling final . Stars the great María Félix as a wonderful woman with dark past who stumbles with badness , envy and intolerance of a selfish and cruel society . Classic Spaniard movie about twisted loves resulting in fateful consequences. Dealing with a sentimental story with ruthless lovers , traitors , egoistic people leading to a multiple drama with the inevitable confrontation at the end . This interesting as well as intimate story is a passionate retelling and a touching drama . Maria Felix performs in her usual style , as she created a larger-than-life character: herself. La Doña, as the star was known after the character of her 1943 movie Doña Bárbara, starred in 47 movies, most of them forgettable except for her presence in them. More a star than an actress, she constructed an image of a strong woman, a sort of one-liner she-male that went beyond the traditional role of Latin American women. Her marriage to Agustín Lara the most popular Latin composer from the 30s to the 60s, was a great event itself. Her fame went beyond Mexico to Latin America , France and Spain where performed some films, such as : Faustina, Mare Nostrum, Sonatas, La Corona Negra and La Noche del Sabado. She always refused to learn English, so she never acted in any English language movie. That's the main reason why her fame was related almost exclusively to Latin countries. And along with a very good support cast with plenty of familar faces by the time, such as : José María Seoane , Manolo Fábregas , María Rosa Salgado , Virgilio Teixeira , Mariano Asquerino , Juan Espantaleón , Maria Asquerino , José Prada and uncredited Fernando Fernán Gómez.
The settings are decent though mostly made in ¨Carton-Piedra (stone)¨ . Atmospheric cinematography in black and white great cameraman Michel Kelber who's deemed to be one of the best classic Spanish photographers - though foreign origin- with a long and prestigious artistic career . Adding an evocative and adequate musical score by Manuel Parada . The motion picture was lavishly produced by Cesareo Gónzalez Productions that along with Cifesa were the most known production companies during Francoist period , that often financed these false but breathtaking historical spectacles . The yarn was professionally directed by veteran Rafael Gil . Being filmed in usual style of the forties and in stylistic scholarship , without leaving a trace the historical issues , in terms of dramatic and narrative excitement . Rafael was one of the best filmmakers from Spanish cinema , directing several classic movies , such as : ¨Don Quijote De La Mancha¨ , ¨El Clavo¨ , ¨La Fe¨ , ¨La Señora De Fatima¨, ¨La Reina Santa¨ , ¨La Guerra De Dios¨ , ¨El Beso De Judas¨ ,¨Aventuras de Juan Lucas¨ , ¨Eloísa está debajo de un almendro¨, ¨Tierra Sedienta¨, ¨La Prodiga¨, ¨Huella de luz¨, ¨Viaje sin destino¨, ¨Teatro Apolo¨, among others . Rating : 6/10 . Agreeable drama for Spanish cinema aficionados.
