History Film / TheCuencaCrime

** Goaded and threatened by Isasa, Gregorio's wife says that she heard her husband and León talk once about the graveyard. Despite the absolute lack of evidence, this is taken as further confirmation that they committed the crime and hid the body there.

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, shortly after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its onscreen gore, nudity and villainous portrayal of judges, conservatives, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was guaranteed to run in trouble. It sat ''specially'' bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover of the dictatorship who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], ordered the film pulled and its director, Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something similar happened in post-Francoist Spain. However, the case was thrown before trial after it was ruled that no crime was possible due to all film censorship having been abolished in Spain in 1977.

The film hit Spanish theatres at last in 1981. Despite its [[ScrewedByTheNetwork limited August release]] and a 'S' rating (equivalent to the American 'R'), it [[SleeperHit absolutely broke the national box office]], helped in no small part by a big StreisandEffect. It also established Miró as a film director, as she had almost exclusively worked in television before.

* {{Malaproper}} / YouKeepUsingThatWord: ''El Cepa'''s has the less educated speech of all characters and confuses his words. As in RealLife, his explanation for what happened is that he had a "''barrunto''" (or "''barruntá''", which means nothing) and he left. "''Barrunto''" is an old Spanish word for a suspicion or premonition, but it seems he rather means "impulsive behavior".

* YankTheDogsChain: Taboada seems almost charming when he is shaving Gregorio before the reconstruction of the crime. Of course, he's just fucking with him to get his guard down when he tortures him again.

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, shortly after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its onscreen gore, nudity and villainous portrayal of judges, conservatives, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was guaranteed to run in trouble. It sat badly with the sitting Spanish Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover of the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], ordered the film pulled and its director, Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something similar happened in post-Francoist Spain. However, the case was thrown before trial after it was ruled that no crime was possible due to all film censorship having been abolished in Spain in 1977.

* CrimeReconstruction: A staple of murder investigations in Spain today, so it is not surprising to see it here. Gregorio and León fail to reconstruct the crime because they have no idea about how it happened (since it didn't happen at all).

** When the guards come to escort ''El Cepa'' back to La Osa, his main concern is if he will be thrown in jail. Once before Gregorio, he throws himself at his feet, claiming to know nothing of his disgrace, before fleeing as soon as the crowd's attention is not on him. It is at the very least possible that he knew about the men paying for his "murder" but was too afraid to come forward.
** Don Rufo, who when confronted with evidence that ''El Cepa'' is still alive cares only about how this will reflect on himself, hides and negates said evidence, and finally takes the coward's way out by killing himself. The kicker? Don Rufo is the village's [[HolierThanThou Catholic priest]].

The film is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the Real-Life]] "[[BadCopIncompetentCop investigation]]" of the 1910 disappearance and presumed murder of shepherd José María Grimaldos, called ''El Cepa'' ("The Stump") because of his short stature and [[TheFool low intelligence]], in a small village of Cuenca province. Due to the suspicious circumstances of his disappearance (he had just made some money selling sheep, had not manifested any intention to leave to his family, and was last seen going to take a medicinal mud bath in a nearby lagoon), Grimaldos's afflicted mother accuses the two wardens of the farmstead where Grimaldos worked at and who had a history of bullying him, Gregorio and León, of murdering him and concealing the body to steal his money. The case is first studied by a liberal investigative judge, who shelves it after finding no evidence of a crime and simply lists Grimaldos as missing.

However, things change a couple of years later, when the wardens boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he believes they killed Grimaldos. The confession is witnessed by a friend, the all-powerful Deputy Contreras, who is already biased against León and Gregorio because of their leftist leanings. Contreras shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, Isasa, who also has a history of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this history is because of his belief in ColdBloodedTorture. Gregorio and León are broken both in body and spirit, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their [[HeterosexualLifePartners once best friend]] has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back into a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been alive and well elsewhere the entire time.

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, conservative politicians, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Spanish Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover of the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled and its director, Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something like this has happened in post-Franco Spain. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed because all forms of film censorship had been abolished in Spain in 1977.

The film finally hit Spanish theatres in 1981. In spite of its [[ScrewedByTheNetwork limited August release]] and a 'S' rating (equivalent to the American 'R'), it [[SleeperHit absolutely broke the national box office]], helped in no small part by a good StreisandEffect. It also established Miró as a film director, as she had almost exclusively worked in television before.

* TechnologyMarchesOn: Used in-universe to show the passage of time. As [[TheRoaringTwenties the Twenties]] roar along, Tresjuncos gets a paved road and a telephone line.

* TechnologyMarchesOn: Used to show the passage of time. As [[TheRoaringTwenties the Twenties]] roar along, Tresjuncos gets a paved road and a telephone line.

However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. The confession is witnessed by his friend, the all-powerful Deputy Contreras, who is already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism. Contreras shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, Isasa, who also has a history of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this history is because of a fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. Gregorio and León are broken in body and spirit, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their [[HeterosexualLifePartners once best friend]] has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been alive and well in another village the entire time.

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, conservative politicians, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the Spanish government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover from the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled out and its director Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something like this happened in post-Franco Spain. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed, because all forms of film censorship had been abolished in Spain in 1977.

The film finally hit Spanish theatres in 1981. In spite of its [[ScrewedByTheNetwork limited August release]] and a 'S' rating (equivalent to the American 'R'), it [[SleeperHit absolutely broke the national box office]], helped in no small part by a good dose of StreisandEffect. It also established Miró as a film director, as she had almost exclusively worked in television before.

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: Everybody believes Gregorio and León to be guilty. This includes Gregorio's family and each other, who come to the conclusion that the other murdered ''El Cepa'' and is dragging the other to Hell for no reason. At the trial, all of the defense's witnesses refuse to appear but all the prosecution's do.
* AcceptableTargets: In-universe example. Gregorio and León are acceptable targets to the landlords because they are leftists (the movie doesn't get in detail but they were rumored to be Anarchist sympathisers in RealLife), and they are acceptable targets to the Tresjuncos villagers because [[SmallTownRivalry they are from the town over]], La Osa de la Vega. After a while, they become acceptable targets to everyone [[YouCantWin because they are considered guilty]].

* AlwaysGetsHisMan: [[HangingJudge Judge]] [[InspectorJavert Isasa]]. Definitely PlayedForDrama.

** The civil guards wear greenish-gray through the whole movie, but they should wear navy blue before the 1920s. The only thing that changes noticeably is that they wear white hats instead of black in some scenes set in the 1910s (which they actually did, in some cases).
** The epilogue implies that Sergeant Taboada committed suicide along with the judge and the priest before he could be prosecuted. In reality, he was prosecuted, [[MiscarriageOfJustice found innocent]], [[FreakierThanFiction met randomly in Madrid with the accussed after they were exhonerated and got in a fight with them]], and was [[CallItKarma murdered for unrelated reasons]] during the UsefulNotes/SpanishCivilWar.
* AristocratsAreEvil: Although there are exceptions, it's almost a rule that the sharper dressed a character is in this film, the more morally despicable he is.
* BadCopIncompetentCop: All they had to do was to find ''El Cepa'' or keep in contact with their colleagues who knew ''El Cepa'' and where he was.

* BlatantLies: The summary of the first investigation ends with the claim that the accussed were not tortured nor injured in any way, and that there was no reason to think otherwise.
* TheBrute: Taboada is basically a mindless henchman of Isasa.

* ChristianityIsCatholic: At this time in Spain, pretty much the truth, and with a pretty jarring influence over civilian life still (just look at the number of crosses in the tribunal).

* ConvictedByPublicOpinion: Long before trial, the accussed become guilty in the eyes of everybody, who won't even consider their innocence and just look for ways to prove their guilt. Gregorio's wife is almost arrested too because of the same wild rumors, but Isasa prevents it because he [[EvenEvilHasStandards doesn't want]] to [[DoubleStandard take her away from her children.]]
* CourtroomAntics: Gregorio's lawyer tries to defend his innocence at first by reminding the tribunal that they NeverFoundTheBody and that Grimaldos had talked of migrating to Brazil. After León's lawyer convinces him that it is best to claim guilt with diminished responsibility, they claim that their clients were drunk when it all happened and that Grimaldos provoked them by throwing a chair over them when he lost a card game. The jury is not impressed and denies any mitigating circumstance.
* CrimeReconstruction: A staple of murder investigations in Spain even today, so it's not surprising to see it here. Gregorio and León fail to reconstruct the crime because they have no actual idea about how it happened (since it didn't happen at all).
* CutHimselfShaving: Taboada invokes the trope when he shaves Gregorio, telling him to not move, let he cut "himself". [[YankTheDogsChain He then picks some pliers and rips out his moustache]].

** When the guards come to escort ''El Cepa'' back to La Osa, his main concern is if he will be thrown in jail. Once before Gregorio, he throws himself at his feet, claiming to know nothing of his disgrace, before fleeing as soon as the crowd's attention is not on him. It is at least possible (if unconfirmed) that he knew about the men paying for his "murder" for years and was too afraid to do a thing.
** Don Rufo, who when confronted with evidence that ''El Cepa'' is still alive cares only about how this will reflect on himself, hides and negates said evidence, and finally takes the coward's way out by killing himself. The kicker? ''He is a [[HolierThanThou Catholic priest]].''
** Taboada ([[ArtisticLicenseHistory in the movie]]) and Isasa also kill themselves rather than face the same justice they've been claiming to serve their whole lives.

** Isasa keeps Gregorio's wife out of jail because he doesn't want her children to lose both of their parents.
** Taboada throws Gregorio's wife to the ground the moment after she's arrested, even though he has no reason at all and everyone is watching him. However, he takes care of picking her child so she doesn't also hit the ground.
* FedToPigs: When all attempts to locate the body fail, a rumor arises that the accused have fed it to pigs (among other things), and they are also forced to confess that.

* HeelFaceTurn: Although she was never evil to begin with (nor showed any sign that she believed the men to be guilty) Alejandra betrays Isasa, ruins his career and eventually drives him to suicide by exposing that ''El Cepa'' is still alive.

* InspectorJavert: Isasa, since he believes the accussed to be guilty the entire time.
* InsaneTrollLogic: Everytime the accussed get something wrong about the crime, Isasa furiously states that they are lying and making fun of the investigators. The idea that they might be innocent, despite the absolute lack of evidence of their guilt other than wild rumors, never crosses his mind.

* {{Malaproper}} / YouKeepUsingThatWord: ''El Cepa'''s has the less educated speech of all characters and confuses his words. As in RealLife, his explanation for what happened is that he had a "''barrunto''" (or "''barruntá''", which means nothing) and he left. "''Barrunto''" is an old Spanish word for a suspicion or premonition, and it seems unlikely that he actually means this.
* MiscarriageOfJustice: The most notable in the History of Spain. Guaranteed to be brought as an example, even a century after.
* MommasBoy: ''El Cepa'', so much that the moment he disappears his mother is certain that he has been murdered. Averted, however, in that he actually leaves and lives for years without ever contacting her with no problem.
* NeverFoundTheBody: The main problem for the prosecution and the aspect that brings even more torture for Gregorio and León, who obviously can't tell what happened. They eventually settle for a wild rumor about how they butchered him, fed the pieces to pigs, then incinerated the smaller parts, and finally, grinded every bit of bone left until there was nothing left.
* NeverLearnedToRead: ''El Cepa''. When he is first introduced, he holds a flier about his "murder" upside down.

* SmallTownRivalry: Tresjuncos is a typical conservative village under the grip of Deputy Contreras; La Osa is the one leftist hub in the area that is outside his control. They are one-hour walk apart.
* ThrowTheDogABone: After Taboada leaves the room, the guard supposed to carry on with Gregorio's torture is already so sickened by it that he tells Gregorio to scream while he belts the wall. He still begs Gregorio to confess and does not give him water in spite of his profound dehydratation, however.

* TragicBromance: In an unusual example, the tragedy is the death of the bromance itself, rather than either Gregorio or León. They reconcile at the end when they get confirmation that both are completely innocent.
* UglyGuyHotWife: ''El Cepa'''s unnamed wife. Thank God the children took after their mother.

** Gregorio and León's boss reactivates the case when he says that he believes them to be guilty in his deathbed.
** Goaded and threatened by Isasa, Gregorio's wife tells him that she heard her husband and León talk once about the graveyard. Despite the absolute lack of evidence, this is (of course) taken as confirmation that they committed the crime and hid the body there.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Isasa, the all-respectable judge. Gregorio's wife even thanks him in one scene, in spite of the fact that he is single-handedly ruining her and her family.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: ''El Cepa'''s mother dies offscreen, but what happened to his father?

However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. The confession is witnessed by his friend, the all-powerful Deputy Contreras, who is already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism. Contreras shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, Isasa, who also has a history of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this history is because of a fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. Gregorio and León are broken in body and spirit, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their [[HeterosexualLifePartners once best friend]] has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been [[WeCouldHaveAvoidedAllThis alive and well in another village the entire time.]]

* WeCouldHaveAvoidedAllThis:
** If ''El Cepa'' had simply told his family that he was leaving, or talked once to them ''in sixteen years.''
** If any of the authorities in ''El Cepa'''s new village had heard of the first judge's request to locate him and followed it.
** If Gregorio and León's boss had left them out of his last speech.

* CourtroomAntics: Gregorio's lawyer tries to defend his innocence at first by reminding the tribunal that they NeverFoundTheBody and that Grimaldos had talked of migrating to Brasil. After León's lawyer convinces him that it is best to claim guilt with diminished responsibility, they claim that their clients were drunk when it all happened and that Grimaldos provoked them by throwing a chair over them when he lost a card game. The jury is not impressed and denies any mitigating circumstance.

** When the guards come to escort ''El Cepa'' back to La Osa, his main concern is if he will be thrown in jail. Once before Gregorio, he throws himself at his feet, claiming to know nothing of his disgrace, before fleeing as soon as the crowd's attention is not on him. It is at least possible (if unconfirmed) that he knew about the men paying for his "murder" for years and was too afraid to do nothing.

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, conservative politicians, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the Spanish government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover from the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled out and its director Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something like this happened in post-Franco Spain. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed since all forms of film censorship had already been abolished in Spain in 1977.

* AcceptableTargets: In-universe example. Gregorio and León are acceptable targets to the landlords because they are leftists (the movie doesn't get in detail but they were rumoured to be Anarchist sympathisers in RealLife), and they are acceptable targets to the Tresjuncos villagers because [[SmallTownRivalry they are from the town over]], La Osa de la Vega. After a while, they become acceptable targets to everyone [[YouCantWin because they are considered guilty]].

* HolierThanThou: Don Rufo, the priest, betrays any Christian ideal as soon as he is confromted with evidence that he screwed up and might have to pay for it.

* {{Malaproper}} / YouKeepUsingThatWord:

* SmallTownRivalry: Tresjuncos is a typical conservative village under the grip of Deputy Contreras; La Osa is the one leftist hub in the area that is outside his control.

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom
* VillainWithGoodPublicity
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse
* WeCouldHaveAvoidedAllThis
* YankTheDogsChain

(under expansion)

However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. One of the boss's friends, already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism, shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, who also had a history of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this record is because of a fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. The two HeterosexualLifePartners are broken in body and spirit, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their once best friend has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been [[WeCouldHaveAvoidedAllThis alive and well in another village the entire time.]]

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the Spanish government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover from the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled out and its director Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the only time something like this happened in post-Franco Spain. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed since all forms of film censorship had already been abolished in Spain in 1977.

* AcceptableTargets: In-universe example. Gregorio and León are acceptable targets to the landlords because they are leftists (the movie doesn't get in detail but they were rumoured to be Anarchist sympathisers in RealLife), and they are acceptable targets to the Tresjuncos villagers because [[SmallTownRivalry they are from the town over]], La Osa. After a while, they become acceptable targets to everyone [[YouCantWin because they are considered guilty]].

* SmallTownRivalry
* ThrowTheDogABone
* TorturePorn
* TragicBromance
* UglyGuyHotWife

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the Spanish government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover from the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled out and its director Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the first and only time this happened because of a movie after the death of Francisco Franco. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed because all forms of film censorship had been abolished in Spain in 1977.

* ShamedByAMob
* SleeperHit

* StreisandEffect

* ClearTheirName:

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Isasa keeps Gregorio's wife out of jail because he doesn't want her children to lose both of their parents.

* MommasBoy
* NeverFoundTheBody
* NeverLearnedToRead
* PlayingAgainstType
* RetroactiveRecognition
* ScrewedByTheNetwork

* CutHimselfShaving: Taboada invokes the trope when he shaves Gregorio, telling him to not move, let he cut "himself". [[HopeSpot He then picks some pliers and rips out his moustache]].
* DirtyCoward
* EvenEvilHasStandards
* EveryoneRemembersTheStripper
* {{Fingore}}
* TheFool
* GroinAttack
* HeterosexualLifePartners
* HangingJudge
* HolierThanThou
* InspectorJavert
* InsaneTrollLogic
* KangarooCourt
* MiscarriageOfJustice

** The epilogue implies that the senior civil guard committed suicide along with the judge and the priest before he could be prosecuted. In reality, he was prosecuted, [[MiscarriageOfJustice found innocent]], [[FreakierThanFiction met randomly in Madrid with the accussed after they were exhonerated and got in a fight with them]], and was [[CallItKarma murdered for unrelated reasons]] during the UsefulNotes/SpanishCivilWar.

* BlatantLies: The summary of the first investigation ends with the claim that the accussed were not tortured nor injured in any way, and that there was no reason to thiagrenk otherwise.
* ClearTheirName: A notable subversion. Both León and Gregorio lose any hope of having their name cleared, everybody believes them guilty and has no reason to clear them, and even Gregorio's lawyer, who at first tries to defend his innocence, ultimately agrees a strategy with León's lawyer (who thinks him guilty) to seek a verdict of guilt with alleviating circumstances in order to spare both the death penalty. They eventually get their name cleared, but it is not because anyone wants to do it.
* ChristianityIsCatholic: At this time in Spain, pretty much, and with a pretty jarring influence over civilian life (just look at the number of crosses in the tribunal).

* ConvictedByPublicOpinion
* CourtroomAntics
* CrimeReconstruction
* CutHimselfShaving

Considering its production and intended release in 1979, only a few years after the end of the [[UsefulNotes/TheFrancoRegime the Franco dictatorship]], and its heavy use of onscreen gore, nudity and unambiguously villainous portrayal of judges, landlords, priests and civil guards, the movie was all but guaranteed to run into trouble with the Spanish government. It sat particularly bad with the sitting Minister of Culture Ricardo de la Cierva, a holdover from the previous regime who, in a case of LifeImitatesArt [[ArtImitatesLife Imitates Life]], infamously ordered the film pulled out from distribution and its director Pilar Miró to be judged [[DisproportionateRetribution by a military tribunal]] for slandering the Civil Guard, the first and only time to happen to a movie in Spain after the death of Francisco Franco. The case was dropped and the film released after it was ruled that no crime could have been committed because all forms of film censorship had been abolished in Spain in 1977.

* AristocratsAreEvil:
* BadCopIncompetentCop
* BasedOnATrueStory
* BeardOfEvil
* BlatantLies
* ClearMyName
* ChristianityIsCatholic
* ColdBloodedTorture

The film is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the Real-Life]] "[[BadCopIncompetentCop investigation]]" of the 1910 disappearance and presumed murder of small village shepherd José María Grimaldos, called ''El Cepa'' ("The Stump") because of his short stature and [[TheFool low intelligence]]. Due to the suspicious circumstances of his disappearance (he had just made some money selling sheep, had not manifested any intention to leave to his family, and was last seen going to take a medicinal mud bath in a nearby lagoon), Grimaldos's afflicted mother accuses the two wardens of the farmstead where Grimaldos worked at and who had a history of bullying him, Gregorio and León, of murdering him and concealing the body to steal his money. The case is first studied by a liberal investigative judge, who shelves it after finding no evidence of a crime and simply lists Grimaldos as missing.

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: Everybody believes Gregorio and León to be guilty. This includes Gregorio's family and each other, who come to the conclusion that the other murdered ''El Cepa'' and is dragging the other to Hell for no reason.

* AcquittedTooLate: In a non-lethal example, Gregorio and León are proven innocent after their jail sentence is already over.
* AlwaysGetsHisMan
* ArtisticLicenseHistory
* AristocratsAreEvil

* WeCouldHaveAvoidedAllThis

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating
* AcceptableTargets
* AcquittedTooLate
* AdaptationDisplacement
* AlternateCharacterInterpretation

''The Cuenca Crime'' (original title: ''El Crimen de Cuenca'') is a classic 1979 Spanish CrimeAndPunishment film with a twist: There is [[{{Understatement}} a lot]] of punishment, but the crime [[MiscarriageOfJustice is not a crime at all]].

However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. One of the boss's friends, already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism, shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, who also had a history of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this record is because of a fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. The two HeterosexualLifePartners are broken in body and spirit, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their once best friend has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been [[AllForNothing alive and well in another village the entire time.]]

The film finally hit Spanish theatres in 1981. In spite of its [[ScrewedByTheNetwork limited August release]] and a 'S' rating (equivalent to the American 'R'), it absolutely broke the national box office, helped in no small part by a good dose of TheStreissandEffect.

*

However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. One of the boss's friends, already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism, shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, who also had an impeccable record of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this record is because of his fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. The two HeterosexualLifePartners are completely and systematically broken, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their once best friend has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been [[AllForNothing alive and well in another village the entire time.]]

The film is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the Real-Life]] "[[BadCopIncompetentCop investigation]]" of the 1910 disappearance and presumed murder of small village shepherd José María Grimaldos, called ''El Cepa'' ("The Stump") because of his short stature and [[TheFool low intelligence]]. Due to the suspicious circumstances of his disappearance (he had just made some money selling sheep, had not manifested any intention to leave to his family, and was last seen going to take a medicinal mud bath in a nearby lagoon), Grimaldos's afflicted mother accuses the two wardens of the farmstead where Grimaldos worked at and who had a history of bullying him, Gregorio and León, of murdering him and concealing the body to steal his money. The case is first studied by a liberal investigative judge, who shelves it after finding no evidence of a crime and simply lists Grimaldos as missing. However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. One of the boss's friends, already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism, shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, who also had an impeccable record of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic ways]], this record is because of his fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture. The two HeterosexualLifePartners are completely and systematically broken, lose everything, and are compelled to confess in order to avoid further torture and the death penalty, all while believing that their once best friend has roped them into paying for a crime that they didn't commit. It is not until after they have served their sentences and been released back to a village that believes them to be terrible criminals, that ''El Cepa'' is found to have been [[AllForNothing alive and well in another village the entire time.]]

The film is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the Real-Life]] "[[BadCopIncompetentCop investigation]]" of the 1910 disappearance and presumed murder of small village shepherd José María Grimaldos, called ''El Cepa'' ("The Stump") because of his short stature and [[TheFool low intelligence]]. Due to the suspicious circumstances of his disappearance (he had just made some money selling sheep, had not manifested any intention to leave to his family, and was last seen going to take a medicinal mud bath in a nearby lagoon), Grimaldos's afflicted mother accuses the two wardens of the farmstead where Grimaldos worked at and who had a history of bullying him, Gregorio and León, of murdering him and concealing the body to steal his money. The case is first studied by a liberal investigative judge, who shelves it after finding no evidence of a crime and simply lists Grimaldos as missing. However, things change a couple of years later, when the suspects's boss [[DeathbedConfession states in his deathbed]] that he indeed believes that they killed Grimaldos. One of the boss's friends, already biased against León and Gregorio because of their past leftist activism, shares the confession with the new (conservative) judge, who also had an impeccable record of [[AlwaysGetsHisMan always getting his criminal cases closed in record time at his previous station]]. As we soon learn [[TorturePorn in the most horrifically graphic way]], such record was because of his fair, liberal use of ColdBloodedTorture.

(...)

''The Cuenca Crime'' (original title: ''El Crimen de Cuenca'') is a classic 1979 Spanish CrimeAndPunishment film with a twist: There is [[{{Understatement}} quite a lot]] of punishment, but the crime [[ItWasHisSled turns out to be]] [[MiscarriageOfJustice not a crime at all]].

The film is [[BasedOnATrueStory based on the Real-Life]] "[[BadCopIncompetentCop investigation]]" of the disappearance and presumed murder of José María Grimaldos, a dimwitted shepherd from Tresjuncos, a small conservative village in Cuenca province, [[TheEdwardianEra in 1910]].