So, I spent the 4 dollars to watch “Soledad Descalza/Soledad Barefoot” on Vimeo, and I figured I would offer my thoughts on the film.

English subtitled version:

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/barefootsoledad

Original Spanish version:

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/soledaddescalza


First of all, the film is exactly as its described: it’s about a Spanish woman named Soledad who goes barefoot all the time, everywhere. It is not a fake out where she is only barefoot for like five minutes or so of the film.

It’s shot in a documentary style, though it’s completely fictional. I definitely was thinking about the real life barefoot gypsy Cecelia as I watched this movie, since she’s also from Spain, and I wondered if Cecelia might really connect with the film. There’s a lot of social commentary in the film, with criticisms of the media and society’s pressures to conform. The commentary is clear, but not heavy-handed.

Overall, the movie is well-done with a few really excellent performances. Sylvia Conesa, who plays Soledad, is especially great, and I thought she was wonderful at portraying Soledad’s emotional roller coaster. She was also very good at playing a credible barefooter. I doubt the actress is a barefooter in real life, but she was convincing on screen (no tenderfooting). Sylvia reminds me of a younger Sandra Bullock in looks, and I know I fell in love with the character. I would gladly have taken the place of her stupid boyfriend (as would most of the guys here, I suspect)!

I won’t spoil too much, though I will say that the movie does not have a completely happy ending, nor is it overly bleak.

Now, for the most important question: how is the barefooting in this film? Quite simply, it is excellent! As a film intended for a general audience, this is probably as good a foot show as we will ever see. Sylvia Conesa has pretty feet (and FYI, she keeps her nails unpainted), and we see them a lot, often in close-up. Mostly dirty soles, though not black, and there are a few shots of her clean soles. As for outfits, Soledad wears an office skirt and coat, a short sundress, jeans, workout clothes, and shorts, so if you’re a fan of any of those styles, you’ll see them. She even goes sort of goth in one scene.

In addition, we see the bare feet of many other female characters, including a scene where Soledad and a fan touch each other’s soles and compare the toughness. There are a couple of scenes of barefoot guys, but these are brief, and no close-ups. Of particular interest to readers on this site, there is a short scene where a young Russian woman says that she was inspired by Soledad to go barefoot all of the time (though I don’t believe the Russian girl has ever modeled for City Feet).

To sum it up, while not perfect, I would definitely recommend this film to fans of girls who go barefoot all of the time. If you like the stories I have written about barefoot girls, you should like this film.

I don’t really want to go into a lot of spoilers, but I will try to answer questions people might have about the film.

Thank you very much for the review. Really appreciated!

You're welcome! Glad I could help!

One thing I would add, is that Soledad's barefooting is never treated as a joke by the filmmakers. Some of the characters act negatively about it, but the film itself always is sympathetic to Soledad and takes the position that her going barefoot is a good thing, and there's no harm in it. Other people's attitudes are the problem, not Soledad's going barefoot.

Thank you for introducing this good film.

BTW does it has sexy scene?

There are no scenes that are blatantly sexy. She doesn't get into any foot play with her boyfriend or anything like that. Still, there are a lot of close ups of Soledad's feet and other women's feet, and if you think girls just going barefoot in public is sexy, there are plenty of scenes like that.

Do you know of there's a DVD version of this film?

You know where i can watch this without credit card? Unfortunately, i don't have it.

As far as I can tell, there has not been a DVD release of this movie yet, which is too bad, because I would buy it in a heartbeat. I would hope for some nice behind the scenes features, too.

As for seeing it without a credit card, that doesn't seem to be an option right now.

Has anyone else actually seen this movie yet? Anyone have any other questions?

Have You got some pics or scenes from this movie? I don't have a opportunity to buy a whole movie

There's a free trailer for the movie on the Vimeo page linked in my original post. There are several photos on the movie's Facebook page.

I see the film on vimeo too.

Is a docu-film,shot more like a documentary than a real movie.

Anyway there is a scene where are well visible the soles of the protagonist,and are quite
tough and calloused.
It will be interesting to know if the main actress really make her soles like this or if is a montage trick

Thanks a lot for the review --- I watched the trailer a few weeks ago and it looks great.

-Hal-

Hal, you should definitely check out the full film if you get a chance!

Clipper, I really hope that Sylvia Conesa did "keep it real" with her barefooting. Since this was a pretty low budget movie, I doubt there were too many montage tricks, but sometimes it's hard to tell for sure. I would love some more behind the scenes information on the film. Maybe we'll get some if there is a DVD release.

Hi guys

I talked with the director of the film several months ago, and he told me that Silvia got a lot into her character and went barefoot everywhere during the filming. It seems she became sort of a barefooter while the movie was being done. I haven't seen the film so I don't know if her soles are hard and rough, if they seem those of a girl who lives barefoot 24/7, but I am sure she did a great work.