| The Great Madcap | |
| Native Name: | |
| Director: | Luis Buñuel |
| Music: | Manuel Esperón |
| Cinematography: | Ezequiel Carrasco |
| Editing: | Carlos Savage |
| Distributor: | Ultramar Films |
| Runtime: | 91 minutes[1] |
| Country: | Mexico |
| Language: | Spanish |
El Gran Calavera (The Great Madcap) is a 1949 Mexican comedy film directed by Luis Buñuel. The plot concerns a family patriarch who fakes losing all his wealth to end his family's self-indulgent ways.
Everyone takes advantage of Ramiro de la Mata (Fernando Soler), a funny drunkard and rich widower. His daughter Virginia (Rosario Granados), and his son Eduardo (Gustavo Rojo), as well as his lazy brother Ladislao (Andrés Soler), and his sister-in-law Milagros (Maruja Grifell), all do nothing while living at Ramiro's expense. Gregorio (Francisco Jambrina), his other brother tries to help him by making everyone believe that Ramiro is financially ruined, forcing the family to look for jobs of their own.
The Great Madcap was screened at the Luis Buñuel Film Institute on 22 July 2015.[2]