Having said that...

Film festivals are always full of surprises. You never know what to expect. I always try to walk in with an open mind. We all need to be stretched, right? El Perro Negro: Stories from the Spanish Civil War depicted a dark time in Spanish history. Coming from Netherlands, the dark era was matched by an equally dark mood and disturbing music. Seen from the vantage point of a wealthy family from Catalan, we get to witness labor unrest, the collapse of the monarchy, and the Spanish Civil War. In short, things that don't happen in affluent Europe anymore. But here's the scary part--the slippery slope toward anarchy starts to feel possible... A depressing documentary with lessons for us all. I left the screening with a little less bounce in my step. But aren't grainy and dark movies what we generally think of when we think of film festivals? Mukul Khurana