whether look at painting by velázquez and zurbarán or murillo and or by tiziano and botticelli and or by van eyck and or whether listen to mass and requiem by berlioz and rachmaninov and brahms or verdi and i tend to take on an aesthetic attitude and of course a historical contemplation of what my eye and or or ear be perceive . religious aspect do not take part in any appreciation of anything which may be a work of art . this same philosophy stand me in good stead when watch what at first appraisal be a religious film and be it for the cinema or for tv . my mind focusses not only on the story be tell often too well know and anyway but on the acting and the set and the dialogue and the accompany music and and so on . apart from that and religious significance for me have little o no interest whatsoever . from 1492 and when columbus sail the wide ocean and find what he think be india and up to the death of teresa de jesús 90 year later and spain go through rather traumatic experience . the ` reyes católicos sow havoc among the populace with their fiendish interpretation of religiousness and carlos v open up to a more tolerant attitude and and felipe ii immediately slam all that shut with beraged intolerance and produce the inquisition and all the disaster result thereof . give such a background and teresa emerge from the cold high plateau of the deep interior of the iberian peninsular to become a nun . daughter of a jew who convert to catholicism hardly surprising amid the socio religious upheaval take place and one of ten child and she join the carmelite sect and go on to find her own ` descalzas literally hoeless or ` barefoot . this film take up from her early twenty and go through to her death and follow her life around the high land of ávila and the encarnación monastery and and her late travel around most of central spain and reaching a far afield a aragón and sevilla . faithfully recreate from the anals of time by the historian víctor garcía de la concha and specialist in spanish medieval matter and who help in write the script with novelist carmen gaite and this film mostly avoid be sanctimonious or preachy . the film be accompany by music from josé nieto and though on some occasion i detect certain other source and most notably a piece which sound like ` tafelmusik by georg philippe telemann more than a hundred year later . it give rise to my hope of hear something by tomás luis de victoria and also from ávila and coincide in time with mother teresa and one of the great example of early polyphony later take up by the italian . mother teresa herself write a lot and include poetry which later become categorize a ` mystic and a leaning also take up by juan de yepes y álvarez san juan de la cruz or st. john of the cross who appear in this film and as well a the mysticism of fray luis de león and follow on from the archpriest of hita and himself outrageously prone to remarkable romantic sexual verse . concha velasco be bear to do something in this life represent her role in this film be her crowning achievement while nothing else come anywhere near her interpretation of this 16th century saint . only ` más allá del jardín ( 1997 ) ( qv ) be worthy of mention and a anything else in which she have take part have either be minimal or trivial . but in this excellent production and direct by josefina molina and who also carry out her own particular masterpiece and m velasco reach the absolute peak of her creative ability . precisely in the monastery of the ` encarnación a chamber organ be find more or less when this film be be make represent lose for over 400 year the ` organillo de la teresita be discover in an underground vault while it have now be restore and be the old work organ in the world . this shortened version of the original series have a few inexcusable edit fault . some scene even include interrupted dialogue and with the ensue sudden shift of scenario that be somewhat off put . another fault here be the absolutely essential inclusion of a voice in off who narrate certain passage so a to link up the scissored continuity or perhaps i should say discontinuity . the result be a little harrow a couple of time and but with some misgiving have to be admit a necessary for the well be of the whole . even so and at just over 220 minute it would be advisable to show or see this version in two part and or good still show or see the full original 1984 uncut tv series in it natural episode of approximately 1 hour each . footnote representthe spanish use be pure ` castillian that be and the most neutral and unregionalised and which will be of special interest to student of the spanish language .