In June of 1947 Eva Perón, Evita, wife of Juan Domingo Perón (elected president of Argentina en 1946) visited Spain. The country was under the cruel dictatorship of Generalissimo Francisco Franco, victor in the 1936-1938 Civil War against a constitutionally elected government.
At the time, Franco's Spain was an international pariah, condemned by the United Nations as an ally of the Axis powers defeated in World War II; this encouraged guerrilla actions by Communists and others hoping international pressure would cause Franco's fall. There were shortages of food, which other countries refused to sell to Spain, thus was a relief to Franco that Perón offered to sell wheat in very favorable conditions (in spite of his many positive qualities, Perón had an uncanny knack for selecting unsavory friends and allies). Terms for the sale were to be arranged during a projected visit to Madrid by Perón, but at the last moment he decided to send Evita in his place.
Juana Doña was a communist militant. Her husband, a militant as well was executed by Franco in 1941 (with astonishing cruelty, executions stemming from Civil War deeds or vaguely defined "terrorism" lasted until 1975). Juana herself was condemned to death for a victimless bomb attack on the Argentine Embassy in Madrid and was awaiting execution in 1947. The letter of the title is one written by Juana's son to the Argentine Ambassador asking clemency for Juana on the grounds that the attack was perpetrated in Argentine soil (Argentina had abolished the death penalty a long time ago). The letter fell in Evita's hands who interceded for Juana before Franco and achieved the commutation of her death sentence (Juana Doña is real, but there may be some fictional components in this story).
The main part of the miniseries is the complex and colorful interaction of Evita and Carmen Polo, Franco's wife. Polo lived on fear and loathing of the "lower classes" and had a brainless and fanatic take on religion; her only positives were, her manners were impeccable and she was quick on the uptake. She is credited with at least one good deed, however; in 1936 she saved the philosopher Miguel de Unamuno from being lynched after a speech at the University of Salamanca.
In contrast, Evita was born out of wedlock in the lower classes, she had a genuine feeling for worker's rights and for social justice, a burning ambition to succeed on her own and her manners were not impeccable; her outbursts in lunfardo (Buenos Aires slang) were frequent and legendary.
The series describes accurately the horrors of Franco's dictatorship (torture and outright murder by police, the military and assorted thugs were common, and the death penalty was applied indiscriminately). In a more melancholy way, it implies how much of Franco perdures in today's Spain. He is buried in the Valley of the Fallen, a basilica constructed after the Civil War with forced labor of political prisoners (who died in numbers from malnutrition and exposure). Present King Juan Carlos was illegitimately put in power by Franco jumping the true heir, his father, and Juan Carlos' brother died in mysterious circumstances. Finally, the Partido Popular now in power is a clear heir of many of Franco's principles, and many of its members belong to families prominent during Franco. Spain's postwar isolation was easily dealt with by opening the country to American bases and joining the anti-USSR coalition. Alliances with Fascism and Nazism during WW2 were, of course, conveniently forgotten.
Production values for this miniseries are first rate. All actors are outstanding, in particular the principals; Ana Torrent as Carmen Polo and Julieta Cardinali as Evita. It was directed, excitingly and with unfailing sense of pacing by Agustí Villaronga. The script by Villaronga, Roger Danès and Alfred Pérez Fargas is nearly perfect. Regrettably, there seems to be no DVD Region 1 for this series, although you may possibly catch it in You Tube.
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