Antonio Banderas to play Picasso in Civil War film by Carlos Saura
Wednesday, April 23, 2014 @ 2:25 PM
ACTOR Antonio Banderas will play the part of cubist painter Pablo Picasso in a film about the bombing of Basque town Guernika during the Civil War.
Banderas, who was born in Málaga – like Picasso – and takes part in the Easter parades there every year says he has 'reached the time in his life' when he could get away with playing the artist.
“I once refused to play the part of Pablo Picasso, but I've got to a moment in my life where I understand him better, and I'm nearly the age he was when these incidents happened – in 1937, he was about 55 or 56, and I'm not far off,” said the Hollywood legend, who turns 54 this summer.
The film is 'a portrait of very harsh times, with the Spanish Civil War all around', explains Banderas.
“And then there's a commission from the Republic to paint a mural [pictured below right], which Picasso initially refuses to do, but then agrees following the bombing of Guernika.
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