Don Lope is respected in the village but holds eccentric views on romance (do as you please), the law (let the poor get away with it), and religion (a corrupt institution). Lope poses as Tristana's guardian, though she is of age, but his intentions are soon clear.
Tristana, once seduced, grows contemptuous of Lope and begins an affair with rugged middle-class painter Horacio (Franco Nero). Despite his libertine views, Lope opposes the affair, which causes Tristana to leave town with Horacio.
Tristana, though, tires of her younger lover. An unknown ailment affects her leg and compels her to return to the material comfort of Lope's household. A priest convinces her to marry Lope, but the marriage is not consummated, and the kinder he is to her, the colder she is in return.
How others will see it. Buñuel's typically strange direction has surprisingly broad appeal. Partly due to the critical reputation of both Buñuel and Deneuve, the movie won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film and was a minor commercial success.
Today at imdb.com, the user vote total is meager at some 3500 votes but the user ratings are very high and consistent across all demographics. Less surreal than some of Buñuel's other works, Tristana is thus accessible, yet has many scenes and aspects that are open to individual conclusions. For example, why does Saturno react with fear when Tristana proudly displays her breasts? Why does Tristana eventually reject Horacio? Why is Lope so gentle with Tristana once she becomes lame?
How I felt about it. Buñuel was a cynic whose characters act out of self interest. The men are lascivious, but try to conceal their urges from the public. The beautiful women are looking for a comfortable position where they will not be bothered. Rey and Deneuve were ideal for Buñuel films because their screen personalities epitomized the director's sexual stereotypes.
Don Lope is easy to understand. He wants the hot young woman, even though he knows he is too old for her to love him the same way in return. He will settle for mere possession. The lesser character Horacio demands the love of lovely Tristana, but cannot keep her interest because he lacks Lope's wealth and discretion.
Tristana seeks material comfort but, since she is frigid, wants her husband or lover kept at a distance. She unconsciously feels guilty about her idle lifestyle and behavior, and in passive-aggression fashion, pursues forgiveness from the Catholic church. Saturna has maternal tendencies and wants maintainable happiness for Don Lope, Tristana, and Saturno.
Although Buñuel's characters act selfishly, he does not condemn them. Instead, we are expected to be amused by their antics and machinations, which they have little control over and may not even be aware of.