Las secretarias

Interesting movie made in the last years of the Franco regime as a way of showing how modern Spain was. Yet, many of the ideas that the movie puts forth actually still came across as quite conservative in their day. However, it did serve the purpose of giving the audiences that saw the movie in Latin America a picture of a Spain that was living behind the past. Although some of the characters border on caricature, the actors were able to carry the movie thanks to their natural appeal. Both Teresa Gimpera and Sonia Bruno were at the top of their game during this time and this was one of the most pleasant movies from the time. All in all, a somewhat fun time.

Amusing , but average comedy about some young women , his jobs as salesgirls . The leading girls work at insurance office , a commercial place where several friends share longings and hardships while they intend to marry handsome men , including top-notch actors . As several secretaries work in an insurance company (Sonia Bruno, Teresa Gimpera, Paca Gabaldón, La Polaca , the veteran Mary Carrillo). Starring an attractive female group in which developing friendship , solidarity , romance, professional worth between their chiefs , while serving the clients as Don Felipe (Erasmo Pascual) who is always inventing accidents in order to collect the insurance premium .

Choral and simple comedy by the tandem Pedro Lazaga/Pedro Masó with various sentimental affairs , sexual behaviors and labor adventures/misfortunes . A comedy of manners with brief dramatic overtones . The dramatic touches are given for the character played by Mary Carrillo as an old secretary who no longer performs efficiently before her boss Antonio Casas , who fires her, while the others rebel against this injustice ; in addition, the role of the Polaca (of course , like a great dancer she dances some spectacular flamenco dances) as a young secretary who, in love for her boss Alberto de Mendoza , sleeps with him, resulting in subsequent remorse and judgments for it. Today this comedy would not be possible to do because there are several situations that border on the politically incorrect . Two great nice actresses stand out here, Rafaela Aparicio and Florinda Chico , both of them steal the show like two ministry officials who work in the mornings to supplement their salary by working for the insurance office , a situation that would not be possible today either . The film contrasts the wedding wishes of the leading women with the joy of being single for the men , and crosses various relationships in a way that is as superficial and predictable . This irregular picture is agile and friendly, highlighting the bond between Sonia Bruno and her colleague Juanjo Menendez with some funny situations . Uneven but entertaining, its characters face predictable dramatic and humorous troubles treated with some irony, agile rhythm and inoffensive simplicity. The film depicts the Franco epoch and the dictatorship society , but no politic satire but costumbrism or social habits . It has very local aspects of the old Spanish society , concerning the necessity to marry , a traditional way of living , religious moral, sexual repression , among others . It is a so-so Spanish comedy that offers no intellectual stimulus whatsoever , though it has some fun and comical moments .This hilarious as well as average romantic comedy is full of humor , absurd scenes , and narrating the traditional Spanish society in which ruled a dictatorship with modernity. It is a simple , and humorous portrait of a time when the Spanish people live in the late Sixties , including the consuming society and a very slight opening to free and more permissive societies . There are several topics in this film , though many of them we can find in current societies with certain parallelism in a traditional way of life . Situations of comedy and drama are alternated with a magnificent main and secondary cast, as the chief diversion is to guess which next character to appear here and there . Including a lot of familiar faces , such as : José Sazatornil 'Saza' , Pedro Porcel , María Luisa Ponte , Mabel Karr , Alberto de Mendoza , Venancio Muro , José Sacristán, Manuel de Blas , Erasmo Pascual, among others.

It has a pleasant aesthetic full of light and color with stupendous photography in Technicolor and in filmscope by Juan Mariné. As well as atmospheric and evocative cinematography by Antón Garcia Abril. The motion picture was regular but professionally directed by Pedro Lazaga who made various comedies and this was one of his greatest boxoffice hits and rightly so . Lazaga was a prolific and underrated filmmaker with whom Paco made nine films , all of them finely acted by this great artist . Lazaga directed a great number of films of all kinds of genres with especial penchant for comedies , such as : La Patrulla de los Once , Los Tramposos, Sabían Demasiado , El Vikingo , No Firmes más Letras Cielo, Vente a Ligar al Oeste , Hasta Matrimonio nos Separe , Fulanita y sus Menganos, La Amante Perfecta , Vota a Gundisalvo , No desearas la mujer de tu projimo, Terapia al Desnudo, Tres Suecas para 3 Rodriguez , 5 Almohadas para una noche , Yo soy Fulana de tal , En La Cresta de la Ola and many others . But Lazaga also directed wartime genre as El frente infinito, Torrepartida , Cuerda de Presos , La Patrulla and Peplum : Seven Spartans and Drama : Apendiendo a morir , La frontera del miedo , Hombre acosado , Campo Bravo , among others . Directing a number of Paco Martínez Soria vehicles, in the following ones : La Ciudad no es para mi, Abuelo Made in Spain, or Old made in Spain , Padre de la Criatura , Alegre Divorciado, Estoy Hecho un Chaval, Vaya Par de Gemelos . Las Secretarias (1957) rating 5.5/10 . The picture will appeal to Spanish cinema fans .