Spanish
Drama
Feature Film
2001

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I love that the European filmmakers don't seem to have the same hangups about period pieces as does Hollywood. Juana la Loca has gorgeous costumes, locations and sets, excellent actors, and an interesting story.

Set in the 1400's, Juana, a daughter to the queen of Castile, marries Filipe of Burgundy (also known as Filipe the Handsome). Juana eventually becomes queen of Castile, but in that time period goes slowly mad. While history paints a much darker picture of Juana's madness, this movie suggests that Juana wasn't truly mad, but unable to control her consuming jealousy.

You see, Juana fell madly in love with Filipe, when the two met. However, Filipe was quite the womanizer, which Juana could not abide. Juana la Loca focuses perhaps a bit too much on Juana's obsession, and a bit too little on the political ramifications of her personal distractions. Thus, the suggestion that she wasn't really mad doesn't take -- they only show her madness, and not the politics that eventually left her locked up for nearly fifty years of her life (most of those as the official queen of Castile).

Was Juana mad? Eventually, yes. But whether or not she was driven mad by love or genetics will remain a mystery.