There Be Dragons - Official trailer

There Be Dragons is an epic portrayal of tragedy and redemption, set during the tumultuous times of the Spanish Civil War in the early 1900s.

Synopsis: "While researching the life of Josemaria Escriva, the controversial founder of Opus Dei, journalist Robert Torres uncovers hidden stories of his estranged father Manolo, and is taken on a journey through the dark, terrible secrets of his family’s past... Going back in time, we see that Manolo and Escriva are childhood friends, and both face the hardships and injustices that are tearing Spain apart. But as young men, their paths diverge – Escriva pursues a life of faith, while Manolo is swept into the brutal Civil War. As personal and national battles rage, the characters’ lives collide and their deepest struggles (“dragons”) come to life, leading to both tragedy and triumph. Only on a deathbed will the final secrets come to life, and a family’s true destiny be revealed."

A note from director Roland Joffé:
"Does 'There Be Dragons' mark a return to my roots? I’m not sure; but life is a series of loops, and there is a theme that has come back into my life through thinking about the character of Josemaría.

Cosmologists and physicists, people who deal with the structure of things, begin to see that there are patterns and shapes in the universe which we’re part of. The greatest pattern of all is the one formed by love, just as the most frightening one is formed by the absence of love. When love goes, it leaves a vacuum that fills with fear, hatred, despair. I’ve lived long enough to watch that happening, and to realize that love is an enabler. I wanted to make a story which centers on bringing love to the world, and what the absence of love does to the world. What the film shows is that forgiveness is possible and seemingly meaningless acts are capable of generating responses that lead to healing. The inexhaustible possibility of forgiveness is what offers room for hope. But the price is high: it takes effort, discipline, will – and a resolve not to be caught up in the prevailing mood of the crowds.

Civil wars are appalling because they are family feuds. As in civil wars, family members take sides and split up; old resentments become sources of hatred. Those are the civil wars of our everyday lives. There Be Dragons is about both kinds of civil war. When people see it I think they will realize that essentially we’ve all got a choice about whether to hang on to our resentment or find a way of conquering it. You can see your life as a series of injustices, of rejections and hurts, and remain shut up in those, or you can see all those events as opportunities, as chances to conquer those dragons and bring love."

~ Roland Joffé, 2010

Official trailer

More information on earlier post: THERE BE DRAGONS