Film Notes: Apartado de Correos 1001 (1950) directed by Julio Salvador

ES / 90 minutes / B&W / Emisora Films Dir: Julio Salvador Pro: Miguel Grau Screenplay: Julio Coll, Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi Cine: Federico G. Larraya Mus: Ramón Ferrés Ed: Antonio Isasi-Isasmendi Cast: Conrado San Martín, Tomás Blanco, Modesto Cid, Manuel de Juan, Elena Espejo, Emilio Fábregas, Ricardo Fuentes, José Goula, Marta Grau, Casimiro Hurtado Release Date 5 December 1950 (Spain).

Synopsis: A young man named Rafael is killed openly in the street in front of Barcelona Police Headquarters. The two agents from the crime squad in charge of the investigation, Miguel and Marcial, discover, in the room of the victim, a copy of La Vanguardia newspaper in which it has been underlined an advertisement requesting an administrator for a chemical products company upon payment of a substantial deposit and with instructions of writing to PO Box 1001 for more information. This sole clue will lead to the arrest of the murderer.

Begoña and I had the chance to see last night on TV2 this very interesting film that could have been lost forever. Fortunately, it was recovered and, although the quality of the film, sometimes, is not in very good conditions, it’s worth watching it. Together with Brigada criminal (1950) directed by Ignacio F. Iquino, Apartado de Correos 1001 marked the emergence of Spanish detective films, occasionally named Spanish Film Noir. However, I don’t believe it can be considered as film noir, in its true sense, but is not far from the Italian Neo-Realism. It should be highlighted that, although due to budgetary restraints, it was one of the first times that the cameras, in a fiction film, were taken out to the street in Spain. An essential film to understanding the history and evolution of Spanish cinema.

Film poster downloaded from Wikipedia here.