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The Basque Ball - Skin Against Stone (La Pelota Vasca - La Piel Contra la Piedra)

Julio Medem
Spain / 2003 / 115 min / Spanish and Basque with English subtitles

“With over 100 interviews and reels upon reels of archive footage,The Basque Ball  is an incisive documentary on Spain, ETA, and the Basque region. Director Julio Medem (Sex and Lucia, Lovers of the Arctic Circle) delivers a fascinating overview of the torturous politics of the Basque area and the region’s notorious terrorist separatist group. Controversial in the extreme, Medem’s documentary has drawn sharp censure from the Spanish authorities, with Spain’s Minister for Culture branding the film "suspicious." Such a response is typical of the passions that the Basque issue stirs up. Medem’s even-handed approach straddles both sides of the political spectrum, treating the complex web of history, identity and politics surrounding his subject with great maturity.

"A Beginners Guide to the Basque" this certainly isn't. Interviewing a range of artists, politicians, priests, activists, journalists, and academics, Medem delivers a torrent of contradictory opinions, painting a vivid history of both the Basque region and its contested status. It's a heady mix of competing voices: disorientating, dizzying, and demanding.At times, there's so much being thrown at the audience, it's impossible to keep up. Perhaps what's most telling, though, is what isn't here: representatives of Jose Maria Aznar's government and ETA both declined to take part.

With the 'War on Terror' lurking quietly in the background and the spectre of the Madrid bombings adding a further layer to the film's discussion of terrorism, this is a timely, though exhausting, info dump of a movie.It's also a dire warning about the dangers of political deadlock. As one of the film's interviewees argues: "Things are black and white now. You're either with me or against me. We've forgotten all the colours in between." Given the present state of the world, that's a point that resonates far beyond Spain and ETA." - Jamie Russell, BBC Radio

Julio Medem was born in San Sebastián, Basque Country. He started his career as a film critic and later as a screenwriter, assistant director and editor. After a few shorts he directed his first full length feature, Cows (Vacas, 1992) for which he won a Goya Award. After this film he directed The Red Squirrel (La ardilla roja, 1993) and Earth (Tierra, 1996), both receiving international recognition by major directors such as Stanley Kubrick or Steven Spielberg.  With his next movie, Lovers of the Arctic Circle (Los amantes del círculo Polar, 1998) established himself as one of the great values of national cinematography. After the great success explores a lyric eroticism and tragedy with Sex and Lucia (Lucía y el Sexo, 2001). This film he took a tangent from his style to direct and produce The Basque Ball (La Pelota Vasca, 2003), a documentary film about the political problems of the Basque Country which caused a furor amongst Spain's right wing politicians.Following this shot Caotic Ana (Caótica Ana, 2007) and his last film, A room in Rome (Una Habitación en Roma, 2010), is his first film shot entirely in English with an international cast.

• Sundance International Film Festival

  
  

  San Sebastian International FIlm Festival  

   

  London Internationlal Film Festival

  
  

  Havana International FIlm Festival

Quotes

“The most controversial Spanish film in decades…an emotionally-charged documentary." -Fiachra Gibbons, THE GUARDIAN.

“Julio Medem’s best film.” -Geoff Andrew, TIME OUT.

“A presentation committed to non-violence and political dialogue." -Jennifer Green, SCREEN INTERNATIONAL.

"Hard, honest, plural and necessary…” -Carlos Boyero, EL MUNDO.

"The film’s structure is impeccable: an impressive strong editing, creating a overwhelming rhythm which traps the viewer’s attention.” -Mirito Torreiro, EL PAÍS.