This is a gorgeous visual meditation on the work of the great Catalan architect. But I think it is also, more subtly, a study of Spain from a foreign (in this case Japanese) admirer, the accomplished New Wave director Hiroshi Teshigahara.
The film begins with centuries old wall paintings depicting the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition. Then, magnificent shots of Guadi's work are interwoven with those of modern Barcelona and its people. The film concludes with a sequence devoted to an awesome, still unfinished cathedral that Gaudi was working on when he died.
By focusing on the humanistic energy of this church's icons, Teshigahara seems to be positing Gaudi as a Christ-like figure, liberating Spain's national religious art from it's oppressive past and making religion a celebration, rather than condemnation, of humanity.
Review of Antonio Gaudí
