I choose Goya's Ghosts to be my film, not only because Natalie Portman is my favorite actress, I also want to watch the movie itself too. The story itself is fictional,although the historical setting of the movie is authentic.
The first part of the film takes place in 1792. The Inquisition is being reinstated. It is spearheaded by a fanatic monk named Lorenzo (Bardem). Lorenzo talks out of both sides of his mouth. He is having his portrait painted by the well known artist Francisco Goya (Skarsgard) but when he sees that the Church doesn't approve of Goya's work he makes the suggestion that Spain go back to its old, repressive ways.
A young woman named Ines (Portman), who is one of Goya's models, is accused of heresy because she doesn't want to eat pork. She is tortured into a false confession and left in the dungeons to rot. Goya asks for Lorenzo's help and Lorenzo visits her. Lorenzo and Ines pray together but he also rapes her. And Lorenzo is invited to the home of Ines' parents. He is put to the "question" by Ines' father Tomas (Jose Luis Gomez) and fails. He is eventually driven out of Spain.
I think Goya's Ghosts is a fascinating film. It contains many themes that still resonate today. Torture, a foreign army occupying a country and hypocrisy to name a few. It is a film of ideas. I did not take my eyes off of the screen for a minute. I only wished that Goya's Ghosts were a mini series because there would be more time to explore all of these complex ideas.
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