Finding Altimira 2016

     The setting of this film is Cantabria in Northern Spain of 1879.  A cave is accidentally discovered and it is filled with important Paleolithic paintings.  The paintings are located in the caves of Altamira.  Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola y de la Pedrueca begins to carefully study them.  Archaeologist Juan Vilanova y Piera from the University of Madrid is also working in the cave.  They are writing a publication to present this discovery to the academic world.  They believe the drawings are both authentic and very old.  Instead of embracing this discovery, they receive only skepticism and attempts to discredit everything Marcelino and Piera have presented.  Marcelino spends the rest of his life trying to clear his name and reputation.

     Eventually, it was established that the cave drawings date back to around 35,600 years ago.  The entire situation of the disbelief about the paintings also causes pain to Marcelino’s wife and daughter.  They are all surprised that something so beautiful is met with such vehement opposition?  3 ½* (I liked this movie) 

  

97 min, Bio directed by Hugh Hudson with Antonio Bandares, Clement Sibony, Rupert Everett, Javivi, Irene Escolar, Nicholas Farrell, Allegra Allen, Lluis Soler, Tabata Cerezo, Golshifteh Farahani, Chantal Garsan.

Note:  Imdb 5.9 out of 10, 69% critic 45% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Amazon 3.9* out of 5* with 56 reviews, Metacritic 57 out of 100 with 5 critics no user score as yet.

Special Note:  Filmed in Santander, Castro Urdiales, Santillana del Mar, and Comillas, Cantabria, Spain.  The offer was presented to Banderas to visit the actual cave but he refused.  The cave has been closed to the general public since 2002 because the presence of people was causing the paintings to deteriorate.  A replica was built in a museum near the cave in 2001 and Banderas visited this location.  The movie is dedicated to Jose Antonio Lasheras, he was the director of the museum of Altamira from 1991 until he died in 2016.  There are scenes indicating the official opposition of this discovery by the Catholic Church but this isn’t true.