Mar i Cel, la pel·lícula (Mar i Cel, the movie) Review
Written by Laura for Theatre and Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
Mar i Cel, the musical about star-crossed lovers Saïd and Blanca, closed in July after being seen by more than 1.6 million spectators since 1988. Now, it is ready to make the jump to cinema under the direction of Paulí Subirà.
Dagoll Dagom has joined forces with 3cat, who are in charge of Catalonia’s public television and radio services, to bring new life to this epic tale. By using cinema cameras in 4K quality, they aim to immerse the audience in this world of pirates. This was achieved by recording most of the show without an audience and dressing the camera operators in pirate clothes, so they were able to put themselves in the middle of the action and get the best close-ups possible. Furthermore, new transitions were added, some of them adding new historical context for the audience.
Although previous recordings of the show are already available, and the quality of them is good, it is true that this is a complete switch to a more detailed, professional recording, on par with any Broadway or West End proshot. Spanish and English subtitles will be added as well for those who do not speak Catalan, with the intention of bringing the show to a wider audience.
For this special moment, the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès joined forces with Dagoll Dagom in order to bring a fuller sound to the score with more than 50 musicians under the direction of Sergi Cuenca. Albert Guinovart, the show’s composer, plays the piano. I could most certainly feel a difference in certain scenes, which made for a more impactful experience. However, I did note some strange pacing at times, as if the actors didn’t have enough time to rehearse with this new orchestration and felt a bit lost, or perhaps there was a slight delay when mixing the orchestrations with the voices. It’s not very noticeable, especially for first-time watchers, but I did hear little things throughout that kept catching my ear.
This recording features Jordi Garreta as Saïd, Alèxia Pascual as Blanca, and Eloi Gómez as Ferran, along with an incredible ensemble. This is the same cast that performed the show during 2025. This time, we get to see them up close and catch all those fleeting and subtle expressions; Alèxia Pascual remarked that watching the movie is a much closer experience to what the actors experienced every day onstage because of those subtleties. It is most certainly enriching to watch, and it gives one more insight into the characters’ motivations.
Audiences absolutely loved the movie, as did I, and there was clapping every time a song ended as if we all were in the theatre. Catalonia is in love with Mar i Cel, it has always been and it will always be. Having this keepsake is an immense privilege.
Mar i Cel is now playing in cinemas all across Catalonia and will soon be digitally released.
You can read our Mar i Cel review here.
★★★★
