Alma torturada

Margarita Xirgu's brother is accused of murdering a courtesan he has been seeing. Her husband forbids her to see him, lest the family honor suffer. Nonetheless, her brother seeks her out and tells her he intends to flee across the border. She gives him some of her jewels to pay his way. But her husband, seeing them from afar, thinks she is seeing a lover. He announces their marriage is over, although they will continue to live together for appearance's sake. Distraught, Senorita Xirgu seeks the counsel of her friend the doctor. He is treating the injured maid of the murdered woman, who refuses to tell her what has happened.

Senorita Xirgu gets to overact towards the end of this melodramatically titled feature film. This seems to have been her stock in trade at this time, when she made several movies with the same directors -- here, Fructuós Gelabert, and Magín Murià -- with the same leading man, Ricardo Puga. I can't say that the leading lady's anguish in the face of events is not justified. I simply think that the situation is ridiculous and the eventual answer to the question of who the murderer is a bit ridiculous given the film's events.

The copy I looked at, drawn from two partial prints and with a couple of key titles missing, is in decent shape. However, it is filmed in essentially dull manner; there is no intercutting to raise tension as Srta. Xirgu rushes by chauffeured automobile to prevent a duel. Instead, he have the duellists and their seconds preparing themselves, and then the heroine rolls up and walks over the armed parties to prevent a killing.