Talk to Her (2002)

Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.

Director:

Pedro Almodóvar

Writer:

Pedro Almodóvar

Stars:

Rosario Flores, Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti

Won 1 Oscar. Another 45 wins & 47 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Javier Cámara	...	Benigno Martín
Darío Grandinetti	...	Marco Zuluaga
Leonor Watling	...	Alicia
Rosario Flores	...	Lydia González
Mariola Fuentes	...	Rosa
Geraldine Chaplin	...	Katerina Bilova
Pina Bausch	...	Bailarina 'Café Müller'
Malou Airaudo	...	Bailarine 'Café Müller' (Dancer)
Caetano Veloso	...	Singer at party - "Cucurrucucú Paloma"
Roberto Álvarez	...	Doctor Vega
Elena Anaya	...	Ángela
Lola Dueñas	...	Matilde
Adolfo Fernández	...	Niño de Valencia
Ana Fernández	...	Hermana de Lydia
Chus Lampreave	...	Portera

Storyline

After a chance encounter at a theater, two men, Benigno and Marco, meet at a private clinic where Benigno works. Lydia, Marco's girlfriend and a bullfighter by profession, has been gored and is in a coma. It so happens that Benigno is looking after another woman in a coma, Alicia, a young ballet student. The lives of the four characters will flow in all directions, past, present and future, dragging all of them towards an unsuspected destiny.

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Plot Keywords:

nudity | female nudity | coma rape | coma | nurse | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for nudity, sexual content and some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The bulls' bloodiness in the film is real. An ecological group in Madrid tried to sue Pedro Almodóvar for ill treatment of animals -- not attacking him per se, but society for accepting it. Almodóvar said that he had the permission of the bulls' owners to kill them and that the ecological group was just trying to gain some publicity.

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Quotes

Marco Zuluaga: Love is the saddest thing when it goes away, as a song by Jobim goes.

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Crazy Credits

The end credits contain the following text: "El 7 de agosto, durante el rodaje de esta película nació Pablo hijo de Cova y de Juan y niño de todos.". This translates to: "On August 7th, while shooting this movie, Pablo, son of Cova and Juan and child of all of us, was born."

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Connections

Referenced in At the Movies: 25 Years of Margaret & David (2011)

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Soundtracks

Raquel
By Rufino Almeida (c) Africa Nostra
From album "Tôp d'Coroa" by Bau
Courtesy of Lusafrica

User Reviews

Perhaps Almodovar's greatest work

There are many who say that "Todo Sobre Mi Madre" is his best film, but now that I've seen both these movies, I give the nod - by a long way - to "Hable con Ella". This is a masterpiece, and not just because of the poignancy of the characters, or the story in general, or the way the scenes are shot - watching the matador get dressed was quite engrossing - but EVERYTHING comes together so wonderfully. The brilliance of Spanish-language films never fails to amaze me, and this is another one in that long line of greatness. There will be times where the viewer may feel somewhat uncomfortable with the characters and their actions, but that does not stop Almodovar from exploring such emotions; indeed, one sometimes gets the impression that Almodovar's entire purpose is to make you analyze your own feelings - and simply does it better than anyone else. Recommended for anyone who can read subtitles.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures Classics

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

14 February 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Talk to Her

Filming Locations:

University Hospital HM Montepríncipe - 25 Avenida de Montepríncipe, Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$104,396, 24 November 2002

Gross USA:

$9,357,911

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$64,790,996

Company Credits

Production Co:

El Deseo, Antena 3 Televisión, Good Machine

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min 104 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1