Why Ayuda a Madrid is worth five minutes of your time

You should watch this today if you like seeing real history without the polished edges of a big Hollywood production.

History buffs will love it. People looking for a fast-paced action movie will probably hate it and turn it off after a minute.

It is basically a silent home movie about survival. Except it was made for the whole world to see.

The film shows trucks being loaded with giant sacks of flour. You can almost smell the dust coming off the burlap.

There is no acting here. Just men with rolled-up sleeves moving heavy stuff because people are hungry.

One shot lingers on a crate of milk bottles for a long time. It feels like the camera person wanted to make sure we knew those bottles were important.

It is much more grounded than the heavy drama you see in something like The Day of Faith. There are no big speeches here.

I noticed a dog running in the background of one scene. Nobody acknowledges it. It just makes the whole thing feel more alive.

The posters on the walls are everywhere. They are graphic and bold, screaming for help.

It reminds me a bit of the grainy, rough look of Garmon, but without the music.

Sometimes the camera shakes. It is like the person filming was in a hurry to get to the next truck.

There is a weirdly long shot of a steering wheel. I am not sure why it is there.

Maybe they just liked the way the light hit the metal.

It is not trying to be a masterpiece like Borderline or anything artsy.

It is just a record of a moment when people tried to be decent.

The editing is a bit choppy in the middle. It cuts from a face to a truck tire very fast.

You can tell they did not have much time to make this look pretty.

I wonder if any of these people survived the siege. The movie doesn't say, which is kind of sad when you think about it.

It is way different than a flick like Silk Hat Kid which feels like a total fantasy.

This is just dirt and work.

If you have ten minutes, just sit and look at their faces.

They look tired. But they keep moving the sacks. 🚛