By NICANOR LORETI
There’s no doubt that Cecilia Roth is an international superstar. From starring in Almodovar’s first Oscar-winning film ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER to some of Adolfo Araistarain’s best films, she’s definitely a force of nature. But early in her career, she starred in Ivan Zulueta’s cult and one-of-a-kind “vampire” opus ARREBATO (a.k.a. RAPTURE, 1979), recently restored in 4K and released on an extras-packed special edition blu ray by Altered Innocence partnering with Vinegar Syndrome. For fans of the Spanish film, it’s a treat. For those who have not seen it, you’re in for an intense and unique experience. ARREBATO stars Eusebio Poncela, Will More, and Roth as a seductive and unpredictable Ana, one of her breakthrough roles.
We reached out to Cecilia, who took half an hour out of a rehearsal to remember her amazing time shooting it.
What does ARREBATO mean to you all of these years later?
Well, it means a lot for me in my life; I wouldn’t say “in my career” because I don’t measure things career-wise. Ana could have been someone else, and she was a little bit older than me. I was 21 years old at the time. I don’t know what happened with her… I think she didn’t want to get naked (laughs). So, they all knew I wanted that role. Keep in mind we were all friends: Eusebio (Poncela), Will (More), Ivan (Zulueta), and me. I was like the small pet that used to follow them around, and one day Ivan says to me: “Do you want to play the role of Ana in the film?” I almost died, I was so happy, I couldn’t believe it because they all knew I wanted it so much. I really, really wanted to do it.
What was the experience like?
It was a wonderful experience. We rehearsed a lot, and I felt completely comfortable. We were already friends and this made our bond even stronger. I had an amazing chemistry with Eusebio, and we worked together several times after ARREBATO. In MARTIN HACHE, for example. And I did whatever they asked me to do, I didn’t care.
Ana is a very special character, because she’s seductive and she’s always on edge so it was a challenge. But Ivan and the guys were there for me. We lived together in that house for ten days during the rehearsal process and then while making the film. I remember everything like it was yesterday. I tell you again, I have this experience tattooed on my skin. Actually, under my skin… And I really, really miss Ivan and Will. I’ve suffered and I’m sad they’re not around anymore. I loved them and admired them a lot. You know, Will had a very special and particular personality.
Last time I saw him was in Miami, almost twenty years ago… we had not seen each other in a long time but when we met again, it was like we had seen each other the day before. And Ivan came to visit to the apartment where I was shooting MARTIN HACHE. Keep in mind he didn’t leave his home much, so for me, it was like the definitive act of love. And we talked about deep, profound stuff. We always did, though. And he had an amazing sense of humor… however, he had a difficult time dealing with this world, this reality. He suffered the world’s injustices and took them personally. And he also didn’t understand what was wrong with his addiction. Why the world didn’t get it. He believed it was his body and he could do whatever he wanted with it. He was so, so special… that… hey, I’m doing all the talking and you must have a lot of questions! (laughs)
This is amazing, just keep going.
It took him a lot of time to finish whatever he was working on at the time, be it a short film, a movie, or the movie posters he designed (he did the poster design for all of Pedro Almodovar’s early features), and those especially were extraordinary. He was a really talented and gifted artist, and everything he did had this deep meaning to him. Ha cared so much about it that he put his heart and soul in everything he was doing, no matter what it was. It gives me goosebumps talking about him, I feel like he’s standing right next to me as we speak.
Well, he still lives through his art. Look what’s happening with this remastering of ARREBATO.
Yes, of course. It was finished in 1979 and it’s still so… alive. For me, it’s the film that kicked the door open for the 80’s. When it opened, in the Azul Cinema at the Gran Via in Spain… I couldn’t stop crying. It screened there for a week. And I cried so much because I felt no one understood what Ivan wanted to tell and that it was unfair that the film didn’t get all that much recognition… But, well, after that much crying, we have a remastered copy now available for everyone to see.
Ivan never made another film, and I heard him say he put everything he had in ARREBATO; that when he finished it, there was nothing left… Were you aware of this while making the film?
He always gave his all. Every time. For example, there’s this scene in the film where I’m dancing like Betty Boop and he felt I was not giving him what he needed. So we did it thirteen times. Thirteen! Keep in mind this was shot on film, so it was expensive… and a lot of film. I didn’t know what to do anymore. After the fifth take, I was completely lost. But he knew exactly what he wanted, so when we got to the thirteenth take, he said “Yes, that’s it!”. For me, they were all the same, but he was seeing things on another level. He had a very clear idea of how things should be, and they should be like that. Since he was such a great artist, he had drawn all of the film in his sketch book.
He had a storyboard? For ARREBATO? Wow!
Yes, exactly. He did. Remember that back then you could not see what you had just shot right away like nowadays… In 1979 you had to wait two days until the negative was processed, and then you had no chance to change anything.
And what about improvisation?
Well, imagine that if he had drawn all of the film, he knew exactly what he wanted from us, so we better say exactly what he wanted. He had spent so much time working on that screenplay that he wanted everything to be as he had written it. There’s not one second of improvisation on it.
