Spain 1966. John Lennon was determined to leave the Beatles to become an actor, and arrives in Almería to shoot How I Won the War, his first and only non-musical role. Antonio (played brilliantly by a heartfelt Javier Cámara I’m So Excited, A Gun In Each Hand, SFF13 Talk To Her), is a school teacher in the small Spanish town of Albacete, who uses Beatles lyrics to teach his students English. When Antonio learns that Lennon is visiting, he decides to undertake the journey to meet his hero. On his way, Antonio meets two runaways; Juanjo (Francesc Colomer Barcelona Summer Night SFF14), a 16-year-old boy who is escaping his home and suffocating father, and Belén (Natalia de Molina), a 20-year-old pregnant girl reluctantly planning to go home to her mother.
Together they travel in Antonio’s Fiat across the stunning backdrop of Franco’s sun-drenched Spain to reach a destination where they will learn more about themselves and one another than they could have imagined.
Part road-trip, part coming-of-age tale, this charming, whimsical story will make you laugh while tugging at your deepest heartstrings with outstanding performances from the entire cast. The title Living is Easy with Eyes Closed comes from John Lennon’s enigmatic song (penned in Almería) Strawberry Fields which, like the film, once played is not easily forgotten.
