Butterflys Tongue

Cast

Plot

In a Galician town, a young boy, Moncho, goes to school for the first time and is taught by Don Gregorio about life and literature. At first, Moncho is very scared that the teachers will hit him since that was the standard procedure back then, but he is relieved to discover that Don Gregorio doesn't hit his pupils. Don Gregorio is unlike any other teacher; he builds a special relationship with Moncho, teaching him to love learning. Don Gregorio also builds a special relationship with Moncho's father, who is a Republican like him. At this point in Spain, the Republican and the Nationalist factions are vying for control of Spain in the civil war, forcing many to choose sides. Moncho's mother is lukewarm towards the Republic, her main concern being belief in God, and at the end of the film, she sides with the Nationalist rebels.

When Nationalists take control of the town after militarily defeating their opponents, they round up known Republicans, including Don Gregorio. Because of the fact that Moncho's father is a Republican, his family fears that he too will be taken away in the purge if the Nationalists discover his political leanings. In order to protect themselves, the family goes to the town square to jeer the captured Republicans as they are paraded out of the court house and boarded onto a truck. The film ends with Moncho, despite his continued great affection for his friend and teacher, yelling hateful things and throwing rocks at Don Gregorio and the other Republicans, as instructed by his mother, as the truck carries them away, although the last thing Moncho yells are the words for the tongue of a butterfly, espiritrompa (Galician for "proboscis"), a favorite word taught to him by Don Gregorio in an attempt to let his dear friend know that he does not truly mean the words he is yelling.