Goya's Ghosts
The painter Goya becomes involved with the Spanish Inquisition when his muse, Ines, is arrested by the church for heresy. Her father, Thomas, comes to him hoping that his connection with Brother Lorenzo, whom he is painting, can secure the release of his daughter.
The film commercial failure against its mid-range budget of $50.0M, earning $9.4M globally (-81% loss). While initial box office returns were modest, the film has gained appreciation for its distinctive approach within the biography genre.
2 wins & 5 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Goya's Ghosts (2006) exhibits meticulously timed story structure, characteristic of Miloš Forman's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 14-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 54 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.2, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 2 minutes (2% through the runtime) establishes Goya presents his etchings depicting the horrors of the Inquisition to church officials in 1792 Madrid. The artist navigates the delicate balance between creative truth and institutional power.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 13 minutes when Inés is arrested by the Inquisition for refusing to eat pork, falsely accused of secretly practicing Judaism. An innocent moment transforms into a nightmare that will span decades.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 28 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to Lorenzo rapes the imprisoned Inés. This act of profound hypocrisy - the holy man violating the innocent - irreversibly transforms all characters and propels the narrative into moral darkness., moving from reaction to action.
The Collapse moment at 85 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Inés discovers that Alicia is her daughter and that Lorenzo is now wealthy and powerful. She confronts him with their child. Lorenzo's attempt to maintain his new life crumbles as his past sins manifest physically before him., illustrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 91 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Lorenzo is captured by the restored Spanish authorities. The Inquisition returns to power, completing the cycle. The "liberator" becomes the condemned, facing the same machinery of injustice he once served., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Goya's Ghosts's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 14 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping Goya's Ghosts against these established plot points, we can identify how Miloš Forman utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Goya's Ghosts within the biography genre.
Miloš Forman's Structural Approach
Among the 6 Miloš Forman films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.3, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Goya's Ghosts represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Miloš Forman filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional biography films include Lords of Dogtown, Ip Man 2 and A Complete Unknown. For more Miloš Forman analyses, see The People vs. Larry Flynt, Amadeus and Man on the Moon.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Goya presents his etchings depicting the horrors of the Inquisition to church officials in 1792 Madrid. The artist navigates the delicate balance between creative truth and institutional power.
Theme
Brother Lorenzo defends the Inquisition's methods, stating that "the Holy Office acts in God's name" - establishing the theme of how institutions corrupt individuals in pursuit of power masked as righteousness.
Worldbuilding
Introduction to late 18th-century Spain: Goya as court painter, his friendship with Father Lorenzo, and the Bilbatúa family. Inés Bilbatúa poses for Goya, establishing her as his muse and the focal character.
Disruption
Inés is arrested by the Inquisition for refusing to eat pork, falsely accused of secretly practicing Judaism. An innocent moment transforms into a nightmare that will span decades.
Resistance
Tomás Bilbatúa desperately seeks help for his daughter. He approaches Brother Lorenzo, who has feelings for Inés. Lorenzo visits Inés in prison, where she is being tortured. Under duress, she confesses to witchcraft and sexual congress with animals.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Lorenzo rapes the imprisoned Inés. This act of profound hypocrisy - the holy man violating the innocent - irreversibly transforms all characters and propels the narrative into moral darkness.
Mirror World
Inés gives birth in her cell to Lorenzo's daughter. The child is taken from her immediately, embodying the thematic mirror: innocence destroyed by institutional power and individual corruption.
Premise
The Bilbatúas confront Lorenzo with evidence of Inés's pregnancy. Lorenzo flees Spain as the Inquisition falls and Napoleon's forces invade. Fifteen years pass. Inés remains imprisoned, descending into madness. Goya continues painting, documenting the era's brutality.
Opposition
Inés wanders Madrid's streets, unrecognized and destitute. Lorenzo returns as a powerful French official, now an atheist revolutionary. He has a new family but encounters his abandoned daughter Alicia, who works as a prostitute. The past closes in on all characters.
Collapse
Inés discovers that Alicia is her daughter and that Lorenzo is now wealthy and powerful. She confronts him with their child. Lorenzo's attempt to maintain his new life crumbles as his past sins manifest physically before him.
Crisis
The French retreat from Spain. Lorenzo, now hunted as a collaborator, faces the same institutional persecution he once wielded. Inés's desperate hope for family reunion dissolves. Goya, aging and deaf, witnesses the cyclical nature of violence.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Lorenzo is captured by the restored Spanish authorities. The Inquisition returns to power, completing the cycle. The "liberator" becomes the condemned, facing the same machinery of injustice he once served.
Synthesis
Lorenzo is executed by garrotte in a public square, his body displayed. Alicia gives birth. The restoration government persecutes former collaborators with the same brutal methods. History repeats as power changes hands but methods remain unchanged.
Transformation
Inés, still mad, pushes her grandchild in a carriage through the streets where bodies hang. Goya observes from a distance. No redemption, no justice - only the continuation of cycles of violence and the persistence of innocence amid brutality. A dark, tragic closure.