Bardem Munos, Juan Antonio

Born July 2, 1922, in Madrid. Spanish director and scriptwriter.

In 1947, Bardem graduated from the Institute of Studies and Practice in Cinematography (Madrid). In 1948 he began his career in film. In collaboration with L. G. Berlanga he wrote the scenario for the satirical film Welcome, Mr. Marshall! (1951). Using his own scenarios he made the films Death of a Bicyclist (1955), Main Street (1956), and Vengeance (1957), all sharply social in orientation and realistically reflecting the lives of the various strata of Spanish society. These films stand out sharply from the massive commercial profascist film production which is released for the country’s screens. In Bardem’s films pathos and rigorous analysis of the morals and behavior of people under the conditions of the Franco regime are combined with an affirmation of the theme of fear as the motive for man’s actions and the agelong solitude of the individual. In films such as Sonatas (1959), At Five in the Afternoon (1961), The Guiltless (1962), and Player Piano (1964), Bardem moved away from the basic problems of his creative work. Several of Bardem’s films have been honored with prizes at international film festivals.