Saw El Verdugo, a Spanish black comedy about a young undertaker who marries the daughter of an aging executioner. To keep their government-assisted housing, the undertaker must take over the family business of execution. The film mines comedy form the undertaker's horror of killing someone, from their extreme cheapness, and from from the general societal horror of death. There's nothing really crazy (I don't think you ever even see a dead body) but it's funny in parts and very original. I enjoyed it, even as I thought it was a bit silly.
For some reason it's absolutely beloved by Spain. There may be some drama which was undersold by my cut-rate subtitles, or it may have something to do with the censorship laws still in place at the time. I wonder if there's a thematic echo of censorship in the way that no one can stand the profession, just because it deals with the ultimate human experience.
The funniest idea the film deals with is how the undertaker is more-or-less strong-armed into the executioner job. The film has the feel of a crime movie, with the protagonist trying desperately to avoid the consequences of his shenanigans, only to have to pay the ultimate price in the end. This is always contrasted with the actual prisoner who will actually die, making the protagonist's horrors seem utterly ridiculous, real though they are. A clever film. A bit dusty with age, but still sly, goofy, and fairly morbid, like a kindly, aging executioner.
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