| Captain Pantoja and the Special Services | |||
| Native Name: |
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| Director: | Francisco José Lombardi | ||
| Producer: | José Enrique Crousillat | ||
| Music: | Bingen Mendizábal | ||
| Cinematography: | Teo Delgado | ||
| Editing: | Danielle Fillios | ||
| Language: | Spanish | ||
| Runtime: | 137 minutes | ||
Captain Pantoja and the Special Services is a 1999 Peruvian-Spanish film directed by Francisco J. Lombardi. It is based on the eponymous comic novel by Mario Vargas Llosa. The film was chosen as Peru's official Best Foreign Language Film submission at the 72nd Academy Awards, but did not manage to receive a nomination.[1]
The plot follows Captain Pantaleón Pantoja, a straightlaced army captain put in charge of creating a brothel for the army, in order to reduce the incidence of rape surrounding army bases and outposts. The first half of the movie focuses on the humor of the situation, as Pantaleon runs the brothel like an efficient branch of the army. The second half is more dramatic as the captain is changed by running the army brothel and focuses on his relationship with the prostitute Olga "the Colombian".
The film is a Peruvian-Spanish co-production,[2] by América Producciones alongside Inca Films and Tornasol Films, with the participation of .[3]
The film premiered in Peru in late 1999.[4] Its Spanish theatrical release was scheduled for 30 June 2000.[5]
The North-American release features a runtime of 119 minutes.[6]