Bunuel_Luis_My_Last_Breath

promising that on the last day of the shoot, the hat wouldbe passed, but Luis only got angrier. Workers shouldn't bepaid by charitable contributions, he raged, demanding thatthe leper collect a paycheck every week, just like all theothers.The "costumes" in the movie are authentic; we scoured theoutlying districts of Madrid for them, particularly underbridges, giving poor people new clothes in exchange for their"rags, which were then disinfected but not washed. Dressedin these clothes, the actors felt their poverty in a real way.While Luis was shooting, I hardly ever saw him; he'd getup at five in the morning, leave the apartment well beforeeight, and not come back until eleven or twelve hours later,only to eat a quick dinner and fall asleep immediately on thefloor. Yet there were moments of relaxation, like launchingpaper airplanes from our window on Sunday mornings. Wedidn't remember how to make them very well, so they flewawkwardly and looked quite bizarre, but the one whose planelanded first was the loser. (The penalty consisted of havingto eat a plane seasoned either with mustard or with sugar andhoney, depending on the preference.) Another of Luis's pastimeswas to hide money in unlikely places and give me onechance to find it using the deductive method; I found it aneffective way of padding my secretarial salary.When our brother Alfonso died in Saragossa, Conchita left, butshe returned from time to time to our skyscraper with its huge brightapartments, now transformed into sober offices. We often went outto eat with friends at Dona Julia's, one of the best taverns in Madrid.Unfortunately, Doha Julia had been corrupted by Alatriste, whoonce left her an eight-hundred-peseta tip for a two-hundred-pesetadinner, so the next time I ate there she gave me an astronomicalcheck. I was surprised, but paid without a word, typically refusingto haggle over money matters. Later, however, I mentioned it toPaco Rabal, who knew her well. When he asked her why she'd