Latido Films is bringing “Carte Blanche,” a bloody period war action movie directed by Oscar-winning producer Gerardo Herrero (“The Secret in Their Eyes”) to the Cannes market. It’s part of a batch of buzzy quality genre movies made at scale, which marks Spain out at this year’s Marché du Film.
“Carte Blanche” is set in the Moroccan desert in 1921, where Spain is waging a disastrous war against Berber tribesmen of the Rif. The movie unfolds after the killing of Spanish soldiers when an eight-man elite Spanish Legion unit sets off, commanded by a sergeant hell-bent on revenge after his brother’s torture and murder in the massacre.
The raid on a local Berber village soon degenerates into racist-fueled rape, torture and slaughter and a suicide mission, as the squad attempts escape down an arid canyon, cornered by local marksmen.
Fast-rising Spanish star Ivan Pellicer (“Querer”) plays hero Faura, who maintains a moral compass. “Carte Blanche” also stars Salva Reina (“The 47”) and Victor Clavijo (“The Wait”) as the squad’s psychotic sergeant.
Employing crafted special effects, “Carte Blanche” was shot in the same arid scrub-desert of Almería used by David Lean and Sergio Leone.
“‘Carte Blanche’ is a gripping action film that does not let you breathe while watching it and stays with you when the film finishes,” said Latido Films head Antonio Saura.
