Letter from Lorca is a simple, yet powerful, short film representation of what could’ve been Spanish poet Federico García Lorca’s final moments prior to being arrested (and eventually assassinated, though no remains were ever found). At only 12 minutes, it is worth watching more than once. For the first go around, I wanted to know what was going on and watched with an eye for narrative and acting, but it wasn’t until the second watch that I was able to really, truly listen to the words that were being delivered.
This is, again, a very simple film. Having one man dictate a letter to another on camera should not be all that interesting to watch or listen to; these are usually moments in larger films, not standalone shorts. This proves an exceptional example to the contrary. Having said that, if Gregory Torrillo ever did a feature-length biopic of Lorca with the same actor, I’d be there to watch.
Whether you know much about Lorca’s life or not, it doesn’t matter. I had a very cursory knowledge of the man, and the circumstances surrounding his life and death, and it didn’t detract from the film at all. The short sets the stage well, and is a nice launching point for finding out more about the poet, or just a quality 12 minutes in your day.
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