Jamón jamón (; ) is a 1992 Spanish romantic tragicomedy film directed by Bigas Luna and starring Javier Bardem, Jordi Mollà, and Penélope Cruz in her debut film. It centers on a young woman named Silvia who becomes pregnant by Jose Luis, the scion of a small but powerful underwear manufacturing empire, and the disastrous fallout of their relationship. The movie engages in word play and puns, and rhapsodises on the juxtaposition of old and new in Spain, as well as many other emotional contrasts such as erotic desire and food.
It is the first film of the so-called Trilogía ibérica by Bigas Luna, followed by Golden Balls (1992) and The Tit and the Moon (1994). It has the Monegros desert as backdrop. Shooting locations included Peñalba, Fraga, Monegrillo and La Almolda. Footage was shot near the Osborne bull (and the adjoining gas station) in Peñalba, a football pitch in Monegrillo, and a roadhouse near Candasnos.
Much of the dialogue and imagery in the film are composed of word play and visual puns. For example, in Spanish, jamón means "ham;" not only do two characters comment that Silvia's breasts taste like ham, but the phonetically similar jamona, which Raúl calls Silvia, is Spanish slang for an unmarried woman.
Release
The film premiered in Spain on 4 September 1992. It later screened at the 49th Venice International Film Festival.
Reception
Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a 69% rating from 16 reviews with the consensus: "It isn't as provocative or amusing as it pretends to be, but Jamón jamóns cheerfully overheated melodrama is often its own reward."
Ángel Fernández-Santos of El País wrote that the film "is uneven, it lurches and lurches, like a drifting canoe, but when it rises to the crest of its waves it reaches the memorable". The film was number one in Spain and grossed $2.5 million. It was also number one in Italy and grossed a further $3.5 million.
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| align = "center" rowspan = "6" | 1993 || rowspan = "6" | 7th Goya Awards || colspan = "2" | Best Film || || rowspan = "6" |
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| Best Director || Bigas Luna ||
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| Best Actor || Javier Bardem ||
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| Best Actress || Penélope Cruz ||
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| Best Original Screenplay || Cuca Canals, Bigas Luna ||
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| Best Sound || Miguel Rejas Ricard Casals ||
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Soundtrack
"Házmelo otra vez" (Concha Valdés Miranda)
See also
- List of Spanish films of 1992