Pedro Almodóvar - Talk to Her (2002)
"Those who follow closely the trajectory of Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar will probably agree that he entered a phase of cinematic maturity with the release of the film The Flower of My Secret (1995), when the strident camp of his earlier work gave way to more sophisticated, subtle and multi-layered works (Live Flesh, 1997, All About My Mother, 1999). With Talk to Her, he reaches a pinnacle, and while the film does not have the same exhilarating effect as, for example, High Heels (1991), it proves that Almodóvar has perfected the art of looking for the absurd and making it absolutely plausible. Almodóvar probably is the last great European auteur, combining old-school integrity and vision with a post-modern bite.
Talk to Her takes us back to one of Almodóvar favourite scenarios, the hospital, which is used as a metaphor for many of his favourite motives: loneliness, soul-baring impromptu meetings and desperation, and the absurd humour that can be wrought out of this combination. During a Pina Bausch performance of Café Muller, Benigno (Javier Camara) notices that Marco (the quintessential Latin new man Dario Grandinetti) is shedding a tear of joyful emotion (which is quite often Almodóvar's way of establishing sexual ambiguity, even when there isn't an obvious one and just leaving it there). Jump cut to Benigno working in a hospital where 24 hours a day he looks after Alicia (Leonor Watling), a dancer who's been in a deep coma for four years. One of the things Benigno does for his comatose object of desire is to pursue her favourite cultural activities on her behalf, such as art house cinema and dance shows (hence the reason why he went to see Pina Bausch in the first place) and then 'tell' her what he's seen (hence the title). We also find out that Benigno had been obsessed with her ever since he was unleashed from a homebound existence looking after his ailing mother. Meanwhile, Marco finds love with Lydia (Rosario Flores), a celebrity bullfighter who also goes into a coma after being gored by a bull. That is when their lives cross again, and Benigno remembers Marco from the Pina Bausch performance (for those who ever saw Pausch's Café Muller and Mazurca Fogo, the film will provide an extra ingredient of pleasure).
Here starts the second part of the film, when the lives of the two leading men ironically hinge on the lives of two comatose women, and Benigno's character grows increasingly dense and psychotic as he leads the narrative to an unexpected turn. At this point Almodovar treats the audience to a fantastic narrative experiment: he weaves in a short black and white silent film called Amante Menguante (Shrinking Lover), which takes up about seven minutes of the film and which is used as a distraction for a defining moment in the plot. With this structural interference, Almodóvar proves for good that he is a symbolist of the highest order. While it would be a crime to reveal the details, the finale is once again in the hands of Pina Bausch, with a dancer letting out long, deep sighs. It's a cathartic end to a film so rich that it leaves the audience gasping for air and which makes you want to go out and tell your friends about. Just like Benigno does."
Antonio Pasolini (kamera.co.uk)
Filmography:
Pepi, Luci, Bom y las otras chicas del montón (1980)
Laberinto de pasiones (Labyrinth of Passions) (1982)
Entre tinieblas (Dark Habits) (1983)
¿Qué he hecho yo para merecer esto? (What Have I Done to Deserve This?) (1984)
Matador (1986)
La ley de deseo (The Law of Desire) (1987)
Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) (1988)
¡Átame! (Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down) (1989)
Tacones lejanos (High Heels) (1991)
La flor de mi secreto (The Flower of My Secret) (1994)
Kika (1996)
Carne trémula (Live Flesh) (1997)
Todo sobre mi madre (All About My Mother) (1999)
Hable con ella (Talk To Her) (2002)
La mala educación (Bad Education) (2004)
Volver (Return) (2006)
Links:
Pedro Almodóvar - Steven Marsh (Senses of Cinema)
Pedro Almodóvar, Guardian Unlimited (interview)
'All About Pedro's Women', The Observer
