Edgar Neville

Edgar Neville

Edgar Neville , born Edgar Neville Romree, IV. Conde (Count) de Berlanga de Duero , (born December 28, 1899 in Madrid , Spain ; † April 23, 1967 ibid) was a Spanish diplomat , writer , film director , screenwriter and film producer , one of the leading filmmakers of Franco-era cinema.

Live and act

First steps as a writer and diplomat

Born in Madrileño, son of the British engineer Edward Neville Riddlesdale and a Countess de Berlanga de Duero, he studied philosophy, humanities and law at the university in his hometown and in Switzerland. Although he had made a name for himself as a writer (novels, plays, humorous stories, short stories) at an early age, Edgar Neville initially decided on a political career. He started in the diplomatic service in 1922 and was initially sent to the Moroccan border town of Oujda as a Spanish consul . In 1927 he was entrusted with special tasks and sent to the Spanish embassy in Washington, DC A little later, Neville was appointed Spanish consul in Los Angeles . It was there that the young count met numerous Hollywood artists such as Charlie Chaplin , Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford . Production company MGM convinced Neville to take over the supervision of Spanish versions of American films.

Return to Spain and film work

Then Edgar Neville began working as a film director on his return to Spain in 1931. At first he only directed short films, in 1934 he worked as an assistant director and co-screenwriter on the novel “ La traviesa molinera ” by the Argentinian Harry d'Abbadie d'Arrast . In 1935, Edgar Neville's first feature- length film was directed by the adaptation of the novel “ El malvado Carabel ” based on a model by Wenceslao Fernández Flórez . When the civil war broke out in 1936 , the young arch-conservative director initially got between the fronts, sided with the Franquists as a war reporter in 1937 and, with the victory of the fascist dictatorship of the “Caudillo” in 1939, he had his final breakthrough as one of the parade directors of the new regime. From 1939 to 1941 Neville directed several co-productions with the other central European fascist state, Italy.

In the mid-1940s, Neville's artistically most fertile phase followed. With " La torre de los siete jorobados ", " Domingo de carnaval " and " El crimen de la calle de bordadores ", he shot a popular police film and thriller trilogy with horror elements, which was based on German film expressionism of the 1920s. Almost at the same time in 1945, “ La vida en un hilo ” was made, a very successful comedy with a malicious tenor. Five years later, Neville made Spain's first contribution to neorealist cinema with “ El último caballo ”. Edgar Neville also shot the literary adaptations " Nada " (1947) and " El baile " (1959; based on his own model from 1952) as well as the flamenco musical " Duende y misterio del flamenco ", which was created against the backdrop of the El Escorial monastery. further popular successes. Neville's ambitious co-production with France “ La ironia del dinero ” turned out to be a financial fiasco and ended his sporadic activity as a producer of his own productions.

additional

Since 1952 Edgar Neville concentrated again on his work as a writer and published various novels and plays. His son Raphael Neville (1926–1996) from his marriage to Ángeles Rubio Argüelles Alessandri (1906–1984), who had made a name for herself as a patron of the theater in Malaga and founder of a drama school there, worked as a painter.

Filmography

as a director and (co-) screenwriter

• 1931: Yo quiero que me lleven a Hollywood (short film)
• 1933: Falso noticiario (short film)
• 1935: Thu, re, mi, fa, sol, si o La vida intima de un tenor (short film)
• 1935: El malvado Carabel
• 1936: La señorita de Trévelez
• 1938: La ciudad universitaria (short documentary film)
• 1938: Juventudes de España (short documentary)
• 1939: ¡Vivan los hombres libres! (Documentary)
• 1939: Santa Rogelia (only co-director)
• 1939: In the red hell (Carmen fra i rossi)
• 1940: Santa Maria (co-director)
• 1941: Verbena
• 1941: La parrala (short film)
• 1942: Correo de Indias
• 1943: Café de Paris
• 1944: La torre de los siete jorobados
• 1945: La vida en un hilo (also production)
• 1945: Domingo de carnaval (also production)
• 1946: El crimen de la calle de bordadores
• 1947: Nada (also production)
• 1947: El traje de luces
• 1948: El marqués de Salamanca
• 1948: El señor Esteves
• 1950: El último caballo (also production)
• 1951: Cuento de hadas
• 1952: El cerco de diablo (co-director)
• 1952: Duende y misterio del flamenco (also production)
• 1954: La ironia del dinero (co-director and production)
• 1959: El baile
• 1960: Mi calle

literature

• Kay Less : The film's great personal dictionary . The actors, directors, cameramen, producers, composers, screenwriters, film architects, outfitters, costume designers, editors, sound engineers, make-up artists and special effects designers of the 20th century. Volume 5: L - N. Rudolf Lettinger - Lloyd Nolan. Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-89602-340-3 , p. 655.

Web links

• Edgar Neville in the Internet Movie Database (English)