Adrianne Kelly
SPA 104; Section 02
Ms. C. Hernandez
“Carol’s Journey” The movie “Carol’s Journey (El viaje de Carol)”, tells the life changing and heartfelt story of a young and strong character by the name of Carol. This chapter of her life is set in 1938, during the time of the civil war in the historically rich European and Spanish speaking country, Spain. The movie gives insight of this historical event through the eyes of Carol, and we also see how the war affects her and her loved ones. By the tender age of twelve Carol tries to adjust and settle into what seems to be her new life in Spain and takes both the challenges and joys that face her throughout the movie. While watching “Carol’s Journey” I was charmed and intrigued by the characters and their relationships, the culture and old customs of the country. After the movie I felt moved and inspired and I would recommend this movie to anyone. My favorite characters beside Carol are Tomiche and her grandfather, Don Amalio. Firstly, Carol is one of my favorite characters because she is very outgoing, tough, stern minded and sweet, a lot like how I was when I was her age. However, she is rebellious, in more good ways than bad which makes her character courageous, unpredictable and fun. Tomiche, “Tomi”, is my second favorite because he represents strong males, both young and old, who hustle and use their wits to make nothing into something for not just themselves but for their loved ones, such as his own mother. The things that make Tomi a special character is that he is very sweet, kind, and respectful of authority and his outgoing personality. Don Amalio is my other favorite character because he represents the wise men that younger people look up to and admire and as a result he is respected by a lot of the people in his town. Moreover, I would say that these characters represent the liberalist’s party of the civil war, because their characteristics were more about being outspoken of their opinions, and finding more efficient ways to live. The civil war mainly affects Carol’s relationships with her father, Tomi and her parent’s relationship. The father-daughter relationship is very strong between Carol’s father and herself. As a result of the war we see that their bond only grows stronger, and their courage grows. Both of them face tough challenges in being able to communicate and go through what seems to be impossible to be reunited with one another. Moreover, the civil war doesn’t put a strain on the relationship between Carol’s parents but it brings them closer. Although the two of them are divorced, distance makes their hearts grow fonder. The relationship between Tomi and Carol represents the relationships the civil war damages between loved ones. The young love they share would remind anyone of their first love. However, it represents what the loved ones that people lost as a result of the civil war. If anyone wants to learn about the culture and old customs of Spain, watching this movie would give anyone a great lesson. In comparison today, Spain is still very religious and in the film we see the importance of religious faith is on families and government. Moreover, the fashion style of Spain has not changed much, except today it is more casual. Also, in today’s social aspects women are more liberal than they were in 1938. All in all I believe, “Carol’s Journey” is a great film and anyone would enjoy it. While learning about this page in Carol’s life I was able to get insight of what it was like during the time of civil war in Spain and how it affected the relationships between the characters of the film. Moreover, I learned about the culture of Spain which is still very much alive today. After watching the movie I felt inspired because it reminded me that it’s important to follow your heart, fight for the ones you love and to keep my mind open to new challenges and opportunities that come along.