The Year and the Vineyard

Jonathan Cenzual Burley's follow-up to The Soul of Flies (2011) is an even quirkier affair than his debut, as it follows Sicilian International Brigade member Andrea Calabrese through a hole in time into a sleepy village in contemporary rural Salamanca. Priest Javier Sáez hopes he is a celestial visitor, but the atheist Calabrese simply wishes to get back to the Spanish Civil War to reunite with his lover after seeing a photograph of her fighting at the Battle of Guadalajara. Drawing sly comparisons between the preoccupations of 1937 and the present day, Burley has much fun at the expense of the Catholic Church. But this is more a love story than a satire, and Calabrese's flashbacks to happier times persuade him to help out when a bashful teacher attempts to romance his comely neighbour. The odd gag does fall flat and Sáez's performance is an acquired taste, but the photography and music are as delightful as the premise of this low-key flight of fancy.