Rivelles, Amparo

(1925- )

   Amparo Rivelles was among the most glamorous stars of early Francoism, only rivalled by Aurora Bautista. Unlike Bautista, she was quite content with the prescribed roles she was offered (in comedies and costume dramas) and with her star persona as created by producers. She was born into a family of stage actors, and debuted on film at 15 with Mari Juana (Armando Vidal, 1940). Her early appearances were as an enchanting young lady in the costumbrismo comedy Alma de Dios (Soul of God, Ignacio F. Iquino, 1941) and the more risqué role of a girl who, in spite of censorship restrictions, comes across as a prostitute (aptly redeemed at the end), in Malvaloca (Luis Marquina, 1942).

   At CIFESA, star personality often took precedence over actual roles, and her parts tended to look very homogeneous. In spite of a wide range of characters, including an adulterous murderer in El clavo (The Nail, Rafael Gil, 1944), the sparkling lead in comedies like Deliciosamente tontos (Deliciously Silly, José Luis Sáenz de Heredia, 1943), and a supporting appearance as Queen Isabella in Alba de América (Dawn of America, Juan de Orduña, 1951), her characterizations were always aspects of elegant, sophisticated, haughty Amparo Rivelles. Her career peaked in 1947, when she was awarded one of Spain's most prestigious acting prizes for her parts in La fe (Faith, Rafael Gil) and Fuenteovejuna (Antonio Román).

   But as CIFESA faltered in the early 1950s, so did the style the company and Rivelles had represented. Rivelles quickly became outmoded and unable to find a place in the new industrial context. Her attempts at playing a working-class woman in El batallón de las sombras (The Battalion of Shadows, Manuel Mur Oti, 1957) failed, and in that year she decided to move to Mexico where she settled, becoming a popular stage, film, and soap opera star. Among the most important films in her Mexican career are the melodramas El amor que yo te di (The Love I Gave You, Tulio Demicheli, 1960), El día de las madres (Mother's Day, Alfredo B. Crevenna, 1969), and Cuando los hijos se van (When the Children Leave, Julián Soler, 1969).

   Rivelles returned to Spain in 1977 as something of an icon of conservative drama, an aspect that highlighted in her last film appearances: La coquito (Pedro Masó, 1977), Soldados de plomo (Lead Soldiers, José Sacristán, 1983), Hay que deshacer la casa (The House Must Be Unmade, José Luis García Sánchez, 1986), Esquilache (Josefina Molina, 1989), and El día que nací yo (The Day I Was Born, Pedro Olea, 1991).

   Historical Dictionary of Spanish Cinema by Alberto Mira