Among the strangest and most perturbing films of his overlooked Mexican period, Él is Luis Buñuel's incisive portrait of paranoia, jealousy, and sexual obsession—a nightmarish tale of love gone wrong that prefigures the major themes of his 1960s and '70s work. Incorporating his personal demons into an adaptation of Mercedes Pinto's autobiographical novel, Buñuel tells the story of Francisco Galván de Montemayor (Arturo de Córdova), a devout middle-aged bachelor who falls into amour fou with Gloria (Delia Garcés). After breaking her engagement with another man, Gloria realizes something is terribly off about Francisco, whose sophisticated facade masks deep insecurities and an explosive, violent temper. Descending into madness, Francisco drives Gloria to fear for her life—with no refuge offered by either her family or the church. One of Buñuel's rawest, angriest indictments of religious and social hypocrisy, Él stands as the surrealist master's great excursion into dark melodrama, where civilization can find no answer to the raging urges of the irrational id.

GENRE: Drama, Romance
MPAA RATING: No Rating
RUN TIME: 1h 33m
RELEASE DATE: March 14, 2025
STARRING: Arturo de Cordova, Delia Garces, Luis Beristain, Manuel Donde, Fernando Casanova
DIRECTOR(S): Luis Bunuel
PRODUCER(S): Oscar Dancigers
WRITER(S): Luis Bunuel, Luis Alcoriza
STUDIO: Janus Films