Urban Space of Princesas
By Gricel Ortega, Hershal Patel,
Qutbuddin Vohra, and Adelaido Hernandez
Madrid, Spain provides the perfect urban atmosphere for the characters and plot of Princesas. With the legality of prostitution in Spain, and the environment provided by Madrid, the main characters, two prostitutes named Caye and Zule, are able to form distinct relationships with their urban environment. Throughout the movie, Caye seems to find comfort in the familiarity of her surroundings. She is a native Spaniard, often keeping to a hair salon, and frequently filmed inside restaurants and cafes. Zule, on the other hand, is an illegal and struggling immigrant who seems to find comfort in more volatile environments, often keeping to the streets where she is surrounded with women in her similar situation and also exposed to more clients in a given amount of time.
In the urban atmosphere of Madrid, Caye is able to blend in with common folk, contacting her clients over the phone and in public places, where she is able to disappear into the crowd, dressed in normal clothes and speaking the native tongue. Zule often dresses scantily, and takes to the streets in search of “work” amongst the other immigrant prostitutes. Although she speaks Spanish, it is known that Latin American Spanish is distinguishable from that of Spain. Being a foreigner, Zule is automatically alienated from the locals, unlike Caye, and must remain in the same environment as the other immigrant prostitutes in order to fit in. However, the acceptance of prostitution in Spain and the urban atmosphere of Madrid allows Zule the liberty to make money to support her son back home in the Dominican Republic.
The urban spaces of Madrid, the parks and lots, differ greatly from the insides of buildings and the homes of the characters. In the film, the urban outdoor areas prostitutes frequent in Madrid are portrayed as dirty, almost trashy, run down with graffiti and in warm muddy colors. The city itself is shown in stale colors, contrary to that of the indoor spaces of the film. A good example of the difference of settings is Caye and Zulema’s home. Even though they have a job that others look down upon, their homes seem to be very well put together, and organized with bright colors. Zulema’s home, even though very humble, has a child’s bike in the background and makes the apartment seem comfortable and homey.
With prostitution legalized, perhaps the audience can understand the paths these two women have chosen for themselves in relation to the city. Through Princesas, the audience can see why and how Madrid’s prostitution population is diverse and not homogeneous. The film shows the connection Zulema has with the city and the prejudice towards her and other non- Spaniards at the same time. However, our interpretation of this film is that it sets into the minds of the viewer that no city is immune to this type of urban living. The viewer is urged to either feel sympathy because of why each of the main characters chooses to be a prostitute, or apathy because they work as prostitutes, the “oldest profession in the world.”
Source: here
By Gricel Ortega, Hershal Patel,
Qutbuddin Vohra, and Adelaido Hernandez
Madrid, Spain provides the perfect urban atmosphere for the characters and plot of Princesas. With the legality of prostitution in Spain, and the environment provided by Madrid, the main characters, two prostitutes named Caye and Zule, are able to form distinct relationships with their urban environment. Throughout the movie, Caye seems to find comfort in the familiarity of her surroundings. She is a native Spaniard, often keeping to a hair salon, and frequently filmed inside restaurants and cafes. Zule, on the other hand, is an illegal and struggling immigrant who seems to find comfort in more volatile environments, often keeping to the streets where she is surrounded with women in her similar situation and also exposed to more clients in a given amount of time.
In the urban atmosphere of Madrid, Caye is able to blend in with common folk, contacting her clients over the phone and in public places, where she is able to disappear into the crowd, dressed in normal clothes and speaking the native tongue. Zule often dresses scantily, and takes to the streets in search of “work” amongst the other immigrant prostitutes. Although she speaks Spanish, it is known that Latin American Spanish is distinguishable from that of Spain. Being a foreigner, Zule is automatically alienated from the locals, unlike Caye, and must remain in the same environment as the other immigrant prostitutes in order to fit in. However, the acceptance of prostitution in Spain and the urban atmosphere of Madrid allows Zule the liberty to make money to support her son back home in the Dominican Republic.
The urban spaces of Madrid, the parks and lots, differ greatly from the insides of buildings and the homes of the characters. In the film, the urban outdoor areas prostitutes frequent in Madrid are portrayed as dirty, almost trashy, run down with graffiti and in warm muddy colors. The city itself is shown in stale colors, contrary to that of the indoor spaces of the film. A good example of the difference of settings is Caye and Zulema’s home. Even though they have a job that others look down upon, their homes seem to be very well put together, and organized with bright colors. Zulema’s home, even though very humble, has a child’s bike in the background and makes the apartment seem comfortable and homey.
With prostitution legalized, perhaps the audience can understand the paths these two women have chosen for themselves in relation to the city. Through Princesas, the audience can see why and how Madrid’s prostitution population is diverse and not homogeneous. The film shows the connection Zulema has with the city and the prejudice towards her and other non- Spaniards at the same time. However, our interpretation of this film is that it sets into the minds of the viewer that no city is immune to this type of urban living. The viewer is urged to either feel sympathy because of why each of the main characters chooses to be a prostitute, or apathy because they work as prostitutes, the “oldest profession in the world.”
Source: here
No comments:
Post a Comment