IMDb RATING
6.1/10
3.9K
YOUR RATING
A construction worker uses his charm and bravado in an attempt to attain enough finances to build his dream project.A construction worker uses his charm and bravado in an attempt to attain enough finances to build his dream project.A construction worker uses his charm and bravado in an attempt to attain enough finances to build his dream project.
- Awards
- 4 wins & 3 nominations
Alessandro Gassmann
- El amigo de Melilla
- (as Alessandro Gassman)
Benicio Del Toro
- El amigo de Miami
- (as Benisio Del Toro)
Francesco Maria Dominedò
- El Mosca
- (as Francesco Mª Dominedo)
Francisco Casares
- El productor
- (as Paco Casares)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSecond part of Bigas Luna's "Iberian Trilogy" also including Jamón, Jamón (1992) and The Tit and the Moon (1994).
- ConnectionsReferenced in Two Girls and a Guy (1997)
- SoundtracksHuevos de oro
(Theme)
By Nicola Piovani
Performed by the Orchestra dell'Unione Musicisti di Roma
Directed by Nicola Piovani
Violoncello soloist: Francesca Taviani
Featured review
A tragedy, told in an over-the-top fashion celebrating Iberian food and stereotypes, where one man's hubris leads to his downfall
Bigas Luna's 1993 film HUEVOS DE ORO ("Golden Balls/Eggs", a title punning on both the goose that laid the golden eggs and a tough guy's balls of steel) depicts the rise and fall of Benito Gonzalez (Javier Bardem), a young Spanish construction worker who becomes an affluent real estate developer on the Mediterranean coast.
After being jilted by his first girlfriend (Elisa Tovati), who leaves him for his best friend, Benito develops a mania for building the tallest building in Benidorm, which may be seen as little more than an enormous phallic symbol flaunting his manhood. Obsessed with this big construction project, his lust for his next woman, Claudia (Maribel Verdú) takes second place to having her sleep with potential investors to win them over. Benito then marries a banker's daughter, Marta (Maria de Medeiros) to have access to her father's funds. Benito lives a life of sexual excess and enormous consumption of food, especially the Alicante sweet known as torron. Like some of the work of Almodovar, Bigas Luna clearly likes riffing on Spanish stereotypes and regional differences.
Ultimately, however, Benito's hubris leads to his downfall. This protagonist is certainly an odious guy, but -- though I won't spoil the ending -- the depths to which he is ultimately sunk inspire a perverse sympathy in the viewer. Years went by between my first viewing of this film and the second, but in the interim I would often look back on this film's plot and ending scenes, thinking of how sad it was to lose everything and end up that way.
HUEVOS DE ORO isn't an especially deep film, but that dramatic arc, hewing very close to classical notions of tragedy, is impressive and I'd say this film is worth a watch.
After being jilted by his first girlfriend (Elisa Tovati), who leaves him for his best friend, Benito develops a mania for building the tallest building in Benidorm, which may be seen as little more than an enormous phallic symbol flaunting his manhood. Obsessed with this big construction project, his lust for his next woman, Claudia (Maribel Verdú) takes second place to having her sleep with potential investors to win them over. Benito then marries a banker's daughter, Marta (Maria de Medeiros) to have access to her father's funds. Benito lives a life of sexual excess and enormous consumption of food, especially the Alicante sweet known as torron. Like some of the work of Almodovar, Bigas Luna clearly likes riffing on Spanish stereotypes and regional differences.
Ultimately, however, Benito's hubris leads to his downfall. This protagonist is certainly an odious guy, but -- though I won't spoil the ending -- the depths to which he is ultimately sunk inspire a perverse sympathy in the viewer. Years went by between my first viewing of this film and the second, but in the interim I would often look back on this film's plot and ending scenes, thinking of how sad it was to lose everything and end up that way.
HUEVOS DE ORO isn't an especially deep film, but that dramatic arc, hewing very close to classical notions of tragedy, is impressive and I'd say this film is worth a watch.
helpful•20
- crculver
- May 28, 2017
- How long is Golden Balls?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Huevos de oro
- Filming locations
- Villajoyosa, Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain(Playa Casco Antiguo)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- ESP 420,000,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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