The Dog in the Manger

Comedy based on a play by Felix Lope De Vega Y Carpio with screenplay by the same filmmaker Pilar Miro , but slowing paced , spoken in verse , being for this reason quite a lot difficult to follow and ultimately turns out to be a bit boring . Spanish production with fine acting , colorful cinematography and rousing score by Jose Nieto . El Perro Del Hortelano¨ deals with Diana , countess of Belfour (Emma Suarez) falls in love for her secretary , Teodoro (Carmelo Gomez) , who at the same time is engaged to other woman (Ana Duato) . As envy and jealousy lead to Diana to separate both lovers.

This is a slow-paced , deliberate though enjoyable comedy costumer . It is a riveting film though a little dull . Comedy with historical background and romantic elements ; adding culture and fun , including enjoyable performances and appropriate set design . A funny story plenty of amusing moments , moving feelings and fun finale . It is a light , wistful comedy , easy to watch , and easier to love . It is as beautifully filmed as it is written and acted . This is one of those rare gems that does not stray from its purpose - to be a celebration of love and romance - . Based on a play written by Felix Lope De Vega , the most prolific Spanish playwright of the Golden Age, he was nicknamed "The Monster of Nature", because of his incredible ability to turn out plays quickly ; it is assumed he wrote at least 135 of them, some in as little time as three days . It contains marvelous cinematography , breathtaking musical score , enjoyable production design by Felix Murcia, but , for a variety of reasons, it does not quite pull as much punch as it should have . Anyway, the film is interesting , thematically amusing but hard to follow , as it is played in verse . Fine production design and scenarios with adequate sets , being filmed on location in Palácio de Sintra, Portugal and Queluz National Palace, Queluz, Setúbal church, Lisbon,Portugal . Agreeable and evocative musical score composed and conducted by Jose Nieto . In addition , a spotless pictorial cinematography by Javier Aguirresarobe and a willingness , almost perfect of the elements of each shot , every sequence , every space . Aguirresarobe subsequently would make a prestigious career in Hollywood such as ¨Fright night , ¨The twilight saga: eclipse¨, ¨The road¨ , ¨The others¨ and many others .

The motion picture was well directed by Pilar Miro , though results to be some dull . In 1982 Pilar was designated General Director of Cinema . She was an expert filmmaker of Television chapters and occasionally for cinema , getting some successes such as ¨The dog in the manger or El Perro del Hortelano¨, ¨Beltenebros¨ ¨The bird of happiness¨ , ¨Werther¨ and especially ¨The Cuenca crime¨ . ¨Perro Del Hortelano¨ resulted to be a success and got a lot of money at the Spanish box office , thanks to good cast , spectacular set production and enjoyable atmosphere . Rating : Better than average .