Fernando Trueba's El Embrujo de Shanghai (The Shanghai Spell) is a drama set just after the Spanish Civil War. Dani (Fernando Tielve) is a 14-year-old would-be artist who is hired to care for the elderly Captain Blay (
Fernando Fernán Gómez). Blay convinces the young boy to paint Susanna (Aida Folch), a young woman from the local village. Susanna's father, Kim (Antonio Resines), is a rarely seen but beloved resistance figure, while her mother, Anita (
Ariadna Gil), is considered the sexiest woman in town. One of Kim's associates shows up and begins an affair with Kim, while the two teenagers begin a tentative first romance with each other. The film is adapted from a novel by Juan Marse. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide