Marianela on AllMovie

We can find predecessors of the Spanish Marianela dating back to the dawn of cinema (take a look at D.W. Griffith's Blind Love, vintage 1910). But there's no such thing as an old story if it's done with finesse. Rodio Ducal plays a disfigured young woman who falls in love with blind Pierre Orcel. Theirs is an idyllic relationship-until word comes down that an operation may restore Orcel's sight. In many respects, Marianela can be seen as a worthy precursor to the better-known Hollywood production Mask (1985).