THE EXTERMINATING FILM DIRECTOR

[Spoiler alert: The Exterminating Angel, a film by Luis Bunuel, is discussed in this essay.]

I. LUIS BUNUEL

When the Civil War in Spain ended in 1939 the wrong side had won and a fascist dictator was in the process of executing thousands of people. The Spanish film director, Luis Bunuel (1900–1983) had been working on propaganda films for the Republicans, the socialist coalition…