1999, Spain/France
Comedy, Drama
Pedro Almodóvar (Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!) constructs yet another beautifully interwoven tale of fascinating women and the men that become them. In Almodóvar's gloriously uneven world the estrogen flows strong and without mercy, and men hold little importance aside from the ability to help create another woman (or eventual-woman). Almodóvar has a talent for pulling anecdotes out of a hat and weaving them together to create a tale that depends on each and every fiber. Connections become unbreakable, though initially inconceivable.
Almodóvar presents his influences in plain view, yet the originality of his own story prevents the references from diluting the impact of the film. Bette Davis' All about Eve envelops the film (and is reflected in the title) as women assume the identities of other women. This reference may seem obvious when portrayed on stage, yet that relevance to the overall story is minor. It is the manor in which each woman slips into each other's skins that leaves the impression that though each is unique, their fingerprints may be quite similar.
Almodóvar also uses A Streetcar Named Desire as a vehicle for women seeking escape from their cocoons of unhappiness. Whether it is lack of familial support, lack of breasts, or lack of the right career, each woman soon learns to feed her desires and create wings from that which was previously suffocating. As this is no fairy tale these complications feel natural and true, and instead of a glass slipper the women find honesty in their lives.
The strong cast of women are perfect to portray a grieving mother searching for her son's father (Cecilia Roth), a pregnant nun attempting a life on her own (Penélope Cruz), an aging stage actress (Marisa Paredes) trying to hold onto her young drug-addled actress girlfriend, and a transsexual prostitute with nothing to hide (Antonia San Juan).
Roth (A Place in the World) is stellar as the spider that weaves each story's strands together. She provides strength for all of the other characters, yet quickly breaks down when someone inadvertently reminds her of her own troubles. Her weakness in running away from her life presents her with a parallel life of the same worries, now seen through the eyes of an ill, young nun. Cruz (Belle Epoque) presents her character with fragility masked only by her openness and brave acceptance of her situation. Her appearance on camera lends a softness to the film not always felt through the rough edges of the other characters.
Paredes (The Flower of My Secret) reveals through her character a weathered woman trying to maintain a tough exterior while reliving the wildness of youth through her untamable lover. Though her connection to the other women is not as tenable, her desire to belong to them is. It is often in her dressing room that life becomes unwound, and the stage dressings are removed.
San Juan portrays the hooker-with-a-tongue-of-gold, as Almodóvar's jester who also wants to be taken seriously. Though her quips often lessen the burden of a situation, her honesty strengthens their importance. As the other women learn to make themselves happy in their own skin, ex-prostitute Agrado focuses her happiness on everyone else.
Almodóvar creates such amazing and complicated tales that could easily be broken into intriguing short stories. Yet he somehow blends lives together in such a way that to break them apart would be a crime. Life as we know it should be so simple.
Extras on the DVD include an interview with the director by Columbia film professor Annette Insdorf, a quickie collage as a making-of featurette, and text files on the director and stars.