The One-Eyed King

Based on his stage-play of the same name, Catalan writer-director Marc Crehuet’s darkly comedic and tautly drawn The One-Eyed King looks at the delicacy of personal convictions and the nature of social roles, as authoritarianism and populist politics continue to influence post-austerity Spain.

A sullen young man, Ignasi (Miki Esparbé), who lost his eye to a rubber bullet in a street protest, attends a dinner party with his actress girlfriend, Sandra (Ruth Llopis). It just so happens that a riot policeman, David (Alain Hernández) – the one responsible for firing the shot that took out Ignasi’s eye – is their host for the night.

When David’s wife, Lidia (Betsy Túrnez), decides she cannot deal with his fractured moral compass and leaves him, he ironically turns to Ignasi for advice, which David interprets as prompting him to kidnap a politician.

Primarily set within a cramped and dimly lit apartment, The One-Eyed King is rife with twists, turns and savage dramatics, although resisting any easy polemics. It is a unique allegory; at once thought-provoking and viciously hilarious.