Review written by our collaborator Iván Ríos

Pedro Almodovar's Talk to her

20 years is a long time... Almodóvar is quite far now from the excesses of the extravagant and wonderful " movida madrileña" (Madrid's new wave) of the late 70's and early 80's. Those were the good old days, when everyone could be an artist on the do-it-yourself basis, when ideas were the common currency and people had something to say and were willing to. Pedro Almodóvar was one of the popes of that discussed "movement" with films such as Pepi, Luci, Bom y Otras Chicas del Montón or Laberinto de Pasiones,both fairly excessive films, where the point was having a good time, no more, nor less.

More than 20 years have elapsed from his first film ,Pepi, …, and Almodóvar is nowadays a skilful craftsman, who knows perfectly well what his appeals are and which his limitations, at the same time loyal to himself and to his public, equally effective though considerably less wild and sharp.

In the last years he has tried -successfully I think- to combine the ever-present kitsch aspect of his films with his evolution towards a more serene, more subtle way of telling stories, being the stories themselves much more serious, with melodramatic tones absent in his first titles. The film tells the story of the relationship between Marco (Darío Grandinetti) ,a writer , and Lydia (Rosario Flores), a bullfighter, and the parallelism of their situation with that of Benigno (Javier Cámara) and Alicia (Leonor Watling) .

Benigno is in love with Alicia, a ballet student, to the point of obsession, and becomes his nurse when she has an accident and falls into a coma. Lydia and Marco are dating, and she is hit by a bull, falling likewise into a coma. The two men become friends partly owe to their role as nurses, and we learn more aspects about their relationships, the nature of their love, etc. , through constant shifts in time. The name of the film Hable con Ella (Talk to her) is a quotation Benigno addresses to Marco, since he thinks the act of talking to people, even in that situation, is positive to them. One of the main topics of the film is the importance of dialogue and silence in human communication.

All the interpretations of the film are great, especially that of Javier Cámara -likely to get a Goya award- very well known after his appearance in popular sitcoms, but also Leonor Watling, Darío Grandinetti and, would you believe it? Rosario Flores. Lots of actors are willing to appear in an Almodóvar's film , which allows us to see Paz Vega, Geraldine Chaplin, Fele Martínez or Elena Anaya in brief roles. I bet Paz and Fele - and Almodóvar himself- had a good time shooting El Amante Menguante (The shortening lover) , a hilarious mini-film within the film in the aesthetics of silent Cinema, one of the best moments of the movie.

There is also the brief but memorable show-up of Loles León , a parody of the sensational talk shows concerning famous people and their intimacies-reality is much worse, and Chus Lampreave, repeating her role in Mujeres al Borde de un Ataque de Nervio (Women on the verge of a breakdown), both part of Almodóvar's crew (chicas Almodóvar) for a long time and a wink to his particular humour, which has made him famous. And, as a kind of favour and homage to a friend, Marisa Paredes and Cecilia Roth also appear in the film, both without a single phrase.

Oh, and Agustín , Pedro`s brother. The use of music is a very important aspect in his Cinema; music always comments, adds something to the story ; if we had Jacques Brel in La Ley del Deseo , or Chavela Vargas and La Lupe in several other films, we now have Caetano Veloso, from now on part of the imaginario of the director, and the original score by Alberto Iglesias, a good work by a usual collaborator. The elaborated photography is the work of Javier Aguirresarobe, one of the best directors of photography in Spanish Cinema. He allows Almodóvar to show himself off with brilliant takes of serene beauty.

Almodóvar, particularly since Mujeres…, states explicitly his influences in an obvious way, putting them directly before our eyes. If in Todo Sobre Mi Madre (All about my mother) we had Joseph Leo Mankiewicz, Truman Capote and Tennessee Williams, here it`s David Grubb`s turn, or his novel`s The Night of the Hunter , which was also a terrific film by Charles Laughton. This constant feature of his late years works as a kind of tribute to his heroes and likings; Douglas Sirk, Stahl, Cassavettes and classic Melodrama of the 40's and 50's, among others.

The script is, as usual, very, very good, though, as well as perhaps too much Almodóvar, you know what I mean. Not as good as Todo Sobre Mi Madre (All about my mother), but a nice try. Highly recommendable.