269 reviews
Very few directors, since Bunuel, Fassbinder, Lindsay Anderson and Roman Polanski, have been able to translate their own, very private universes, to the screen. That is why, it divides audiences in such a radical way.
You love it or you hate it. I think, that is the final objective of an artist, to express their view, to give us their own version of the world we live in. It enriches us, it makes us more aware of the million faces of human nature. Thanks to Almodovar we're allowed to feel identified with, what we may consider, marginal characters. What a different experience is to sit through an Almodovar film and a Ron Howard film for instance. Almodovar remains, becomes part of us, Ron Howard's vanishes as we're leaving the movie theater.
You love it or you hate it. I think, that is the final objective of an artist, to express their view, to give us their own version of the world we live in. It enriches us, it makes us more aware of the million faces of human nature. Thanks to Almodovar we're allowed to feel identified with, what we may consider, marginal characters. What a different experience is to sit through an Almodovar film and a Ron Howard film for instance. Almodovar remains, becomes part of us, Ron Howard's vanishes as we're leaving the movie theater.
- marcosaguado
- Mar 18, 2004
- Permalink
This time of the year, when we talk about movies, we have to talk about Oscar. The nominees will be announced this Tuesday, but there are already favorites in some categories. Some people still doubt that "American Beauty" will win as best picture- which I don't, because I think it was the best film of the decade- but almost everyone agrees that this wonderful movie "Todo sobre mi madre"/ "All About My Mother" will win as best foreign language film. And it really deserves that.
I've always recognized Pedro Almodóvar's talent. Most of his films are very weird and quite surreal, but sometimes I don't understand him. So I couldn't decide if I would see "All About My Mother" on the movies, or if I would wait for it to come out on video. It was released in Brazil last October, and only yesterday I went to see it at a local cinema. And... What did I think about it? Well... A true, true masterpiece!
The story of the film is about Manuela (wonderfully played by Cecilia Roth), a nurse who works at a hospital in Madrid, Spain, and has a 17 year old son, Esteban, who doesn't know the identity of his father. On the day of his birthday, he dies in an accident and Manuela gets desperate. She reads his notes and finds out that he wanted to know at least the name of his father. So she goes back to Barcelona, where she got pregnant, trying to search for her ex-husband, but some surprises will change her life.
What Almodóvar makes to this movie is just incredible. He makes us cry and laugh- specially in the scenes where the transvestite Agrado is. But, in fact, the film is a deep drama, studying carefully the female universe with strength and realism, and also explaining the importance of a mother. All the main characters are very well developed and each of them has some importance in the plot. It's really amazing how Almodóvar knows women so well, and how he loves and cares about them. His film is a very complex masterpiece, with some important messages and a wonderful story, and should be seen by everyone, even for the American people who don't like subtitles. But pay attention- the dialogues are fabulous!
"All About My Mother" is surely on my Top 10 of 1999. And... let's wait for the Oscar nominees on Tuesday, but I'm sure it will be nominated, and certainly win. It's much better than last year's winner as a foreign language film, "Life is Beautiful", and is a serious must-see. Just do me a favor: DON'T MISS IT!
Rating: 10/10
I've always recognized Pedro Almodóvar's talent. Most of his films are very weird and quite surreal, but sometimes I don't understand him. So I couldn't decide if I would see "All About My Mother" on the movies, or if I would wait for it to come out on video. It was released in Brazil last October, and only yesterday I went to see it at a local cinema. And... What did I think about it? Well... A true, true masterpiece!
The story of the film is about Manuela (wonderfully played by Cecilia Roth), a nurse who works at a hospital in Madrid, Spain, and has a 17 year old son, Esteban, who doesn't know the identity of his father. On the day of his birthday, he dies in an accident and Manuela gets desperate. She reads his notes and finds out that he wanted to know at least the name of his father. So she goes back to Barcelona, where she got pregnant, trying to search for her ex-husband, but some surprises will change her life.
What Almodóvar makes to this movie is just incredible. He makes us cry and laugh- specially in the scenes where the transvestite Agrado is. But, in fact, the film is a deep drama, studying carefully the female universe with strength and realism, and also explaining the importance of a mother. All the main characters are very well developed and each of them has some importance in the plot. It's really amazing how Almodóvar knows women so well, and how he loves and cares about them. His film is a very complex masterpiece, with some important messages and a wonderful story, and should be seen by everyone, even for the American people who don't like subtitles. But pay attention- the dialogues are fabulous!
"All About My Mother" is surely on my Top 10 of 1999. And... let's wait for the Oscar nominees on Tuesday, but I'm sure it will be nominated, and certainly win. It's much better than last year's winner as a foreign language film, "Life is Beautiful", and is a serious must-see. Just do me a favor: DON'T MISS IT!
Rating: 10/10
- danielll_rs
- Feb 12, 2000
- Permalink
As this was my first Almodovar movie I didn't quite expect that much,was I ever going to be surprised.Almodovar is widely seen as the greatest Spanish cineast since Luis Bunuel,which I really like,and I must say that I concur with that.The resemblances between the two directors are also there,both use intense drama and comedy in one scene to great effect and both attack the church in a big way.
TODO SOBRE MI MADRE is simply one of the best drama's I've ever seen because of it's superb acting and difficult but inventive storyline.The characters are also very well worked out. Leading lady Cecilia Roth is sensational as the mourning mother and the rest of the cast isn't any worse.The supporting roles by Penelope Cruz,Marise Paredes and especially Antonia San Juan are great.San Juan is a real time transvestite which makes it even more realistic. Almodovar caused quite a commotion with this provocative film although it never goes over the line(at least not in my taste)but you should not be old fashioned or truly religious because then it will offend you.
The humor that is put in the film makes it an even better experience.The mixture of intense drama and comedy is perfect.Another brilliant addition is the great soundtrack.The mixture between harmonic classical pieces and jazzy compositions is magnificent.
I can't wait to see more of Almodovar's work. 9/10 (currently number 39 in my all time top 100 list)
TODO SOBRE MI MADRE is simply one of the best drama's I've ever seen because of it's superb acting and difficult but inventive storyline.The characters are also very well worked out. Leading lady Cecilia Roth is sensational as the mourning mother and the rest of the cast isn't any worse.The supporting roles by Penelope Cruz,Marise Paredes and especially Antonia San Juan are great.San Juan is a real time transvestite which makes it even more realistic. Almodovar caused quite a commotion with this provocative film although it never goes over the line(at least not in my taste)but you should not be old fashioned or truly religious because then it will offend you.
The humor that is put in the film makes it an even better experience.The mixture of intense drama and comedy is perfect.Another brilliant addition is the great soundtrack.The mixture between harmonic classical pieces and jazzy compositions is magnificent.
I can't wait to see more of Almodovar's work. 9/10 (currently number 39 in my all time top 100 list)
- erwan_ticheler
- Jul 21, 2004
- Permalink
What I like most about Almodovar's films, this one in particular, is the way he will grab you and pull you into a world you would not normally know and then, confront you with people's lives, emotions, relationships. Manuela, the mother who at the beginning seems so in control and clinical, earnest in her love and with the best intentions for her son, is shown to be much like you and me... full of doubts, questions, a need for answers and trying to understand how her life course has brought her to the present day and made her who she is. Barcelona in winter is richly filmed and serves as a backdrop for the renewing of old satisfying friendships and the budding of new ones, happening simultaneously and somewhat unexpectedly. It rings so true. The slow realisation that we are never really complete, that it's the people we love and live with, or avoid and later regret having done so, that makes us who we are. Almodovar sees the human condition and paints it carefully in this film.
I've watched this masterpiece by Almodovar four times. Each time I unearth new sequences of pure unadulterated truth, beauty, and genius. It is just a totally compelling and amazingly insightful comedy-tragedy that works on so many levels.
Cecilia Roth is an Almodovar favorite, and there's no mystery as to why this is the case. She can express tragedy, wisdom, and an appreciation of dark humor only with her eyes and facial positioning, and express all three vividly at the same time. Her voice also is as commanding of respect as it is sexy and fragile.
Almodovar eye for visual poems of incongruity reaches a new pinnacle in this masterpiece. First, there is the haunting by-play of darkness and light preceding Roth coming to the rescue of El Agreado. Much later, we are treated to the brightness of the upscale restaurant Roth where Roth waits for her ex-husband Lola juxtaposed with a merciless exploration of the vast dark despair of Lola's eyes. Between these bookend-style frames, the profound dualities abound.
If you see one foreign language film per year, make this your next one.
Cecilia Roth is an Almodovar favorite, and there's no mystery as to why this is the case. She can express tragedy, wisdom, and an appreciation of dark humor only with her eyes and facial positioning, and express all three vividly at the same time. Her voice also is as commanding of respect as it is sexy and fragile.
Almodovar eye for visual poems of incongruity reaches a new pinnacle in this masterpiece. First, there is the haunting by-play of darkness and light preceding Roth coming to the rescue of El Agreado. Much later, we are treated to the brightness of the upscale restaurant Roth where Roth waits for her ex-husband Lola juxtaposed with a merciless exploration of the vast dark despair of Lola's eyes. Between these bookend-style frames, the profound dualities abound.
If you see one foreign language film per year, make this your next one.
- tomreynolds2004
- Mar 3, 2004
- Permalink
What a genius Almodovar is! Who else could take such esoteric material and make it not only enjoyable, but relatable. It takes a lot of chutzpah for a male director to swan dive into the gulf of womanhood (I can't believe I just wrote that) and emerge with such truth, HUMAN truth. While the characters of this film seem to represent certain female archetypes, they still flow organically through the ingenious plot. Almodovar shows us that any taboo subject can be tackled without it being exploited when it is done with a compassionate heart. The sheer WARMTH of this movie is what makes it a stunning success. The performances in this film are unforgettable. Cecilia Roth is so dazzling and real, and heartbreaking. But only a genius like Almodovar can break our hearts but still give us hope.
Almodovar is masterful: he has created a film that seeps into you and rips apart your insides. Each moment is flawlessly crafted- the cinematography and light are lush, the writing is heart-wrenching. Loaded with irony and paradox, the story deals sensitively with a plotline that could have been sensationalistic. The strongest feature is perhaps the acting here, which is consistently superb, particularly in the case of Cecilia Roth, the lead actress. This may be the best film I have ever seen.
Offbeat drama about an occupied single mother called Manuela (Cecilia Roth) becomes involved with family problems . Young Esteban (Eloy Azorin) want to become a writer and also to discover the identity of his father, carefully concealed by his beloved mother . Later on , there occurs a tragedy , then Manuela leaves Madrid for Barcelona , there hooks up old and new friends and ,just may be , contacts the long estranged father (Tony Canto) the boy never knew and her son's favourite stage diva (Marisa Paredes) . As Manuela gradually regains the will to live through her involvements with the lives with others such as a transvestite (Antonia San Juan) and a pregnant nun (Penelope Cruz) . Part of every woman is a mother/actress/saint/sinner and part of every man is a woman.
Agreeable film full of feeling , outlandish characters , haunting mood-pieces , Spanish Neo-realism , and sense of style but not totally satisfactory , including conventional pitfalls , profanities and a lot of sexual references . The picture deals with off-the-wall as well as semi-ironic melodrama , familiar absurdities, dysfunctional roles and many other things ; featuring a feminist heroine of classical proportions . The picture is pretty well but turns out to be inferior to Almodovar's subsequent entries such as ¨The skin I live in¨, ¨Volver¨ , ¨The bad education¨ or ¨Talk to her¨. The result is undiluted scabrous drama , crazy strings of plots , sharp images , plenty of sexual dialogs in constant references to blow-jobs and perverted sex . Filmmaker piles up on the contrivances , turns and twisted events so that the picture to have success . It's a piquant look at lower-middle classes involving strange and complicated situations during its half an hour runtime . Pedro Almodóvar dedicated his movie to Bette Davis, Gena Rowlands and Romy Schneider . And being influenced by American films such as ¨All about Eva¨, ¨A streetcar named desire¨ and by director Douglas Sirk . Nice interpretations by all cast , as Cecilia Roth as a hard-working single mummy , Penelope Cruz as a young nun bound for El Salvador, but instead finds out she is pregnant and Antonia San Juan as likable transvestite , she splendidly plays a monologue based on a real life event as when the electronic system of an theater failed, the director suspended the show , then an actress decided to give the news to the audience and make them an offer: if they'd stay, they could listen to the narration of her life . Furthermore , a notorious support cast such as Marisa Paredes , Rosa Maria Sarda , Fernando Fernan Gomez , Candela Peña ,Manuel Lozano , Juan Jose Otegui and other delightfully played roles . As usual in most of Pedro Almodóvar's movies, there is a small role for Agustín Almodóvar, his brother and producer of the film, who plays a cab man . Sensitive musical score by Alberto Iglesias , Almodovar's ordinary ; including some marvelous songs . Colorful and luxurious cinematography by Alfonso Beato .
The motion picture was realized in his peculiar style by Pedro Almodovar ; he often uses symbolism and metaphorical techniques to portray circular story lines though here he directs a special melodrama , including his ordinary touches . Almodovar directs throughout with splendid zip and he usually portrays strong female characters and transsexuals and along his career getting some important international prizes . His first feature film, Pepi, Luci, Bom (1980), was made in 16 mm and blown-up to 35 mm for public release . In 1987, he and his brother Agustín Almodóvar established their own production company : El Deseo, S. A. The "Almodóvar phenomenon" has reached all over the world , making his films very popular in many countries . Oscar-winning Spanish director Pedro Almodovar who made successes such as Labyrinth of passions , Law of desire , Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown , Bad education , All about my mother , Talk to her , Broken embraces , The Skin I Live In and many others . The latest from acclaimed Spanish director , Pedro Almodovar's I'm So Excited (Los Amantes Pasajeros) competing for the inaugural best European comedy honor during the upcoming 26th edition of the European Film Awards .
Agreeable film full of feeling , outlandish characters , haunting mood-pieces , Spanish Neo-realism , and sense of style but not totally satisfactory , including conventional pitfalls , profanities and a lot of sexual references . The picture deals with off-the-wall as well as semi-ironic melodrama , familiar absurdities, dysfunctional roles and many other things ; featuring a feminist heroine of classical proportions . The picture is pretty well but turns out to be inferior to Almodovar's subsequent entries such as ¨The skin I live in¨, ¨Volver¨ , ¨The bad education¨ or ¨Talk to her¨. The result is undiluted scabrous drama , crazy strings of plots , sharp images , plenty of sexual dialogs in constant references to blow-jobs and perverted sex . Filmmaker piles up on the contrivances , turns and twisted events so that the picture to have success . It's a piquant look at lower-middle classes involving strange and complicated situations during its half an hour runtime . Pedro Almodóvar dedicated his movie to Bette Davis, Gena Rowlands and Romy Schneider . And being influenced by American films such as ¨All about Eva¨, ¨A streetcar named desire¨ and by director Douglas Sirk . Nice interpretations by all cast , as Cecilia Roth as a hard-working single mummy , Penelope Cruz as a young nun bound for El Salvador, but instead finds out she is pregnant and Antonia San Juan as likable transvestite , she splendidly plays a monologue based on a real life event as when the electronic system of an theater failed, the director suspended the show , then an actress decided to give the news to the audience and make them an offer: if they'd stay, they could listen to the narration of her life . Furthermore , a notorious support cast such as Marisa Paredes , Rosa Maria Sarda , Fernando Fernan Gomez , Candela Peña ,Manuel Lozano , Juan Jose Otegui and other delightfully played roles . As usual in most of Pedro Almodóvar's movies, there is a small role for Agustín Almodóvar, his brother and producer of the film, who plays a cab man . Sensitive musical score by Alberto Iglesias , Almodovar's ordinary ; including some marvelous songs . Colorful and luxurious cinematography by Alfonso Beato .
The motion picture was realized in his peculiar style by Pedro Almodovar ; he often uses symbolism and metaphorical techniques to portray circular story lines though here he directs a special melodrama , including his ordinary touches . Almodovar directs throughout with splendid zip and he usually portrays strong female characters and transsexuals and along his career getting some important international prizes . His first feature film, Pepi, Luci, Bom (1980), was made in 16 mm and blown-up to 35 mm for public release . In 1987, he and his brother Agustín Almodóvar established their own production company : El Deseo, S. A. The "Almodóvar phenomenon" has reached all over the world , making his films very popular in many countries . Oscar-winning Spanish director Pedro Almodovar who made successes such as Labyrinth of passions , Law of desire , Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown , Bad education , All about my mother , Talk to her , Broken embraces , The Skin I Live In and many others . The latest from acclaimed Spanish director , Pedro Almodovar's I'm So Excited (Los Amantes Pasajeros) competing for the inaugural best European comedy honor during the upcoming 26th edition of the European Film Awards .
At last, an Almodovar Masterpiece! Now we have the final proof and can say without any doubt: Spain has a new true genius. From MUJERES AL BORDE DE UN ATAQUE DE NERVIOS, Almodovar had shown that in his mind rounded an ace, and now several years after and with an irregular filmography, brings us his perfect masterpiece: TODO SOBRE MI MADRE, a homage to all women beginning with Bette Davis, Gena Rowlands, Romy Schneider
and ending with his own mother.
Here we see not just a delicious plot, perfectly narrated, but a camera that fixes everything as if it was the last time, our last chance to watch the indescribable feminine nature in a whole panorama where tenderness and courage rule life.
A puzzle of transitions, a delicate picture of characters and, as ever, a set design that remarks each scene with a touch of simplicity and sophistication. Cecilia Roth is great, superb, unforgettable but she's not alone: Penelope Cruz, beautiful, vulnerable as a `rose'; Marisa Paredes, an actress in her perfect role, without forget to Antonia San Juan, `La Agrado' and Mr. Fernando Fernan Gomez.
Please, don't wait until someone tells you more about a film that puts melodrama, drama, comedy and how not: tragedy, in a eternal stream of harmony. It's a pity: cinema is more pretty than life.
Here we see not just a delicious plot, perfectly narrated, but a camera that fixes everything as if it was the last time, our last chance to watch the indescribable feminine nature in a whole panorama where tenderness and courage rule life.
A puzzle of transitions, a delicate picture of characters and, as ever, a set design that remarks each scene with a touch of simplicity and sophistication. Cecilia Roth is great, superb, unforgettable but she's not alone: Penelope Cruz, beautiful, vulnerable as a `rose'; Marisa Paredes, an actress in her perfect role, without forget to Antonia San Juan, `La Agrado' and Mr. Fernando Fernan Gomez.
Please, don't wait until someone tells you more about a film that puts melodrama, drama, comedy and how not: tragedy, in a eternal stream of harmony. It's a pity: cinema is more pretty than life.
- peregrino00
- Dec 9, 1999
- Permalink
- ComedyFan2010
- Oct 27, 2017
- Permalink
This film, originally, is also known as, Todo sobre mi madre (1999). It may be me, being dumb, but I thought, All About My Mother (1999), a Spanish-French, comedy-drama, was pretty weird and not really humorous at all, which means, I probably didn't get some of the humor. All About My Mother (1999), is one of the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and it won, the Best Foreign Film Oscar, for director, Pedro Almodóvar. So, I wanted to give this film a try and it started to win me over, as it went along, but it was tough for me. It is basically the story of a woman, Manuela (Cecilia Roth), who loses her son, in a hit and run and the story, that comes beyond that loss. There are other, interesting characters, that help carry things along in the film and we do get to see, plot threads, about their lives too. The film is definitely an interesting character study, about different people. It's kind of a, Steel Magnolias (1989), with transvestites.
First of all, I didn't feel much sympathy for Manuela's, creepy son, Esteban (Eloy Azorín), who didn't seem to be the brightest pepperoni on the pizza-pie. All About My Mother (1999), has the feeling of an R-rated, soap opera, but a soap opera, that really gnawed at me in places. But, like I said, this film, did begin to win me over. What made All About My Mother (1999), a little bit better, was the fact, that it has an interesting, not too tedious plot, utilizes great camera work and transition scenes, that were quite good. I also felt it was an interesting change, giving transvestite characters, an aura of strength. They assume the role, of an authority figure, for the other characters. It gave those characters a level of strength. All About My Mother (1999), is interesting, not grabbing, but good enough for a C+. It also has Penélope Cruz.
7.3 (C+) = 7 IMDB.
First of all, I didn't feel much sympathy for Manuela's, creepy son, Esteban (Eloy Azorín), who didn't seem to be the brightest pepperoni on the pizza-pie. All About My Mother (1999), has the feeling of an R-rated, soap opera, but a soap opera, that really gnawed at me in places. But, like I said, this film, did begin to win me over. What made All About My Mother (1999), a little bit better, was the fact, that it has an interesting, not too tedious plot, utilizes great camera work and transition scenes, that were quite good. I also felt it was an interesting change, giving transvestite characters, an aura of strength. They assume the role, of an authority figure, for the other characters. It gave those characters a level of strength. All About My Mother (1999), is interesting, not grabbing, but good enough for a C+. It also has Penélope Cruz.
7.3 (C+) = 7 IMDB.
Pedro Almodolovar is certainly an accomplished film-maker, in many respects: his movies look good and invariably contain interesting elements of plot. Yet for such an acclaimed director, I'm often surprised that when I see his movies, I see elements that I might consider amateurish, with stories that often feel like hastily assembled collections of scenes rather than an integrated whole. 'All About My Mother' displays this fault strikingly. Probably intentionally (because the film is in part a homage to the theatre), the story consists of separate acts, each one filling us in on what has happened since we last met the characters: and while drama occurring off-stage is a staple necessity of the live play, it seems weird in a film. Also, we are introduced to a long succession of characters, and it's hard to care about each, especially as certain key details are never explained (a nun is seduced by a transvestite, for example, but no-one seems to regard this is particularly odd). While I enjoyed the beginning of the movie (when I still had hope of a dramatic resolution), it seemed to lose focus as it went on, and it's final cut - to a rather strange, melodramatic dedicated presumably expressed by Amoldovar himself - leaves everything unresolved (although on reflection, the resolution has probably already happened, it's just that it does so undramatically so you don't even identify the pivotal scenes as you watch them). This film won plaudits, but it left me flat - and not knowing exactly what I was supposed to feel.
- paul2001sw-1
- Jul 31, 2009
- Permalink
I came to this film wanting to hate it, but I was seduced by it and it affected me deeply. Why hate? Because I had just seen a TV documentary about Almodovar. He talks a good deal of shallow rubbish, and the showbusiness darlings who surround him are vile. However, his film speaks with the sincere voice of artistic talent. It even has a touch of greatness.
It is a film about Woman. Almodovar is well-known for his preoccupation with feminine sensibility, and here we go through the range of female awarenesses - Madre, Puta, Actriz. This is not the 'macro' masculine world of war and politics, but the feminine 'micro' universe of caring, loving and suffering. In a real sense, it is "All About Eve".
Manuela loves her son Esteban totally and unconditionally. When he is taken from her, she must forge a new life. Back in her native Barcelona she finds fulfilment caring for Rosa the pregnant nun and Huma the barren actress. A new Esteban appears, and the cycle of living and loving begins again.
This flimsy summary of the story gives no real idea of the film's symbolic and dramatic richness. It is a pattern made of other patterns, with stories repeating, reversing and overlapping endlessly. Names can mean a break with the past (Agrado, Huma) or they can insist on continuity (Rosa, Esteban). In the guignol tradition, names can also delineate character - Agrado tries to make life agreeable for others, Huma Rojo is red smoke, a hollow illusion, and Nina is an adult with a child's personality.
Almodovar deliberately offends against social custom. Women are fathers, birth means death and drama is more real than life. It is tempting to think of Almodovar as the new Bunuel, and he takes the same childish pleasure in shocking the 'decent' Spanish bourgeoisie. When Agrado gives her performance in the theatre, the old folks walk out in disgust while the youngsters stay and are entertained.
"This play marked my life," says Manuela of 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. It made her a mother (the defining experience of her existence) because it introduced her to Lola. She explains that she played Stella and Lola played Kowolski, literally and figuratively. The male symbol is brutal and cruel, the female symbol is the nurturer of life who endures abuse because she loves. Like Stella, Manuela escaped, pregnant and alone. The play returns later as Esteban's birthday treat and the cause of his death. Manuela knows the text by heart, and when she follows the production to Barcelona, fate pulls her into the drama and she triumphs as Stella. Huma is Blanche, the sad derelict, "relying on the kindness of strangers". (Another link with the play is the title of Almodovar's own production company, "Deseo".)
Esteban's delight with his new book is shown in the reading of the foreword - "es un prefacio maravilloso!" The film, similarly, has a marvellous preface. A bag of plasma drips purposefully, its valve shaped like a crucifix. The symbolism is rich and catholic, and prepares us for what will come - here is a figurative mother, giving the blood of life and suffering the cross of sorrow. Taps, console and graph represent institutionalised care, as opposed to the natural, personal care of a mother. These things are neat and orderly, but cold and soulless. This is the organ donation unit of a hospital. It does excellent work, but we see its effort in fragments rather than a whole. The files list organs, not people - 'higado', 'corazon'. Technology can help us, but it can never replace maternal love. We feel uneasy when we are told that "the machine is breathing for him".
Manuela works as a nurse (symbol of the nurturing mother) in this unit, and we see her as an actress appearing in a training video, playing a mother whose son is dead. Two doctors ask for the boy's organs. New life must be nourished from his body's wreckage. When the scene is repeated for real, it is almost too painful to watch. Almodovar takes us to the 'meta' level, with Manuela's anguish setting up cross-rhythms with her professionalism. Love is stronger than systems, and the organ co-ordinator weeps for Manuela.
The real Manuela stands tiny before a vast advert for 'Streetcar', showing Huma's face. Is the image more potent than the individual? Or is Almodovar saying that superficial impact fades, whereas human empathy endures? What is the relationship between the true woman and her made-up face? Esteban dies pursuing the 'red smoke' of an actress's fame. If he had stayed with his real mother and not chased an illusion, he would have been safe.
Esteban will bestow new life. We go with Manuela as she follows her son's heart to Coruna, where another young man has hope restored. The mulch of death feeds the roots of life. Manuela knows two places, Spain's first and second cities, Madrid and Barcelona (importantly for Almodovar, these are the two pre-eminently 'modern' towns). She moves between them along the tunnel umbilicus, as a pregnant teenager, childless mother and finally as triumphant madonna with the 'new' Esteban.
The spectacular vista of Barcelona and sumptuous portal of Gaudi's Sagrada Familia rapidly disappear, and we are soon in an ugly wasteland where prostitutes parade as grotesques in a hell worthy of Goya. These two Barcelonas recur again and again - the outward city of quirky, appealing architecture and the mean streets of the hopeless, directionless underclass.
Almodovar's narrative has been engrossing up to this point. Now it will expand and deepen as a new cast of characters is woven into the film's fabric.
"Que raro!"
It is a film about Woman. Almodovar is well-known for his preoccupation with feminine sensibility, and here we go through the range of female awarenesses - Madre, Puta, Actriz. This is not the 'macro' masculine world of war and politics, but the feminine 'micro' universe of caring, loving and suffering. In a real sense, it is "All About Eve".
Manuela loves her son Esteban totally and unconditionally. When he is taken from her, she must forge a new life. Back in her native Barcelona she finds fulfilment caring for Rosa the pregnant nun and Huma the barren actress. A new Esteban appears, and the cycle of living and loving begins again.
This flimsy summary of the story gives no real idea of the film's symbolic and dramatic richness. It is a pattern made of other patterns, with stories repeating, reversing and overlapping endlessly. Names can mean a break with the past (Agrado, Huma) or they can insist on continuity (Rosa, Esteban). In the guignol tradition, names can also delineate character - Agrado tries to make life agreeable for others, Huma Rojo is red smoke, a hollow illusion, and Nina is an adult with a child's personality.
Almodovar deliberately offends against social custom. Women are fathers, birth means death and drama is more real than life. It is tempting to think of Almodovar as the new Bunuel, and he takes the same childish pleasure in shocking the 'decent' Spanish bourgeoisie. When Agrado gives her performance in the theatre, the old folks walk out in disgust while the youngsters stay and are entertained.
"This play marked my life," says Manuela of 'A Streetcar Named Desire'. It made her a mother (the defining experience of her existence) because it introduced her to Lola. She explains that she played Stella and Lola played Kowolski, literally and figuratively. The male symbol is brutal and cruel, the female symbol is the nurturer of life who endures abuse because she loves. Like Stella, Manuela escaped, pregnant and alone. The play returns later as Esteban's birthday treat and the cause of his death. Manuela knows the text by heart, and when she follows the production to Barcelona, fate pulls her into the drama and she triumphs as Stella. Huma is Blanche, the sad derelict, "relying on the kindness of strangers". (Another link with the play is the title of Almodovar's own production company, "Deseo".)
Esteban's delight with his new book is shown in the reading of the foreword - "es un prefacio maravilloso!" The film, similarly, has a marvellous preface. A bag of plasma drips purposefully, its valve shaped like a crucifix. The symbolism is rich and catholic, and prepares us for what will come - here is a figurative mother, giving the blood of life and suffering the cross of sorrow. Taps, console and graph represent institutionalised care, as opposed to the natural, personal care of a mother. These things are neat and orderly, but cold and soulless. This is the organ donation unit of a hospital. It does excellent work, but we see its effort in fragments rather than a whole. The files list organs, not people - 'higado', 'corazon'. Technology can help us, but it can never replace maternal love. We feel uneasy when we are told that "the machine is breathing for him".
Manuela works as a nurse (symbol of the nurturing mother) in this unit, and we see her as an actress appearing in a training video, playing a mother whose son is dead. Two doctors ask for the boy's organs. New life must be nourished from his body's wreckage. When the scene is repeated for real, it is almost too painful to watch. Almodovar takes us to the 'meta' level, with Manuela's anguish setting up cross-rhythms with her professionalism. Love is stronger than systems, and the organ co-ordinator weeps for Manuela.
The real Manuela stands tiny before a vast advert for 'Streetcar', showing Huma's face. Is the image more potent than the individual? Or is Almodovar saying that superficial impact fades, whereas human empathy endures? What is the relationship between the true woman and her made-up face? Esteban dies pursuing the 'red smoke' of an actress's fame. If he had stayed with his real mother and not chased an illusion, he would have been safe.
Esteban will bestow new life. We go with Manuela as she follows her son's heart to Coruna, where another young man has hope restored. The mulch of death feeds the roots of life. Manuela knows two places, Spain's first and second cities, Madrid and Barcelona (importantly for Almodovar, these are the two pre-eminently 'modern' towns). She moves between them along the tunnel umbilicus, as a pregnant teenager, childless mother and finally as triumphant madonna with the 'new' Esteban.
The spectacular vista of Barcelona and sumptuous portal of Gaudi's Sagrada Familia rapidly disappear, and we are soon in an ugly wasteland where prostitutes parade as grotesques in a hell worthy of Goya. These two Barcelonas recur again and again - the outward city of quirky, appealing architecture and the mean streets of the hopeless, directionless underclass.
Almodovar's narrative has been engrossing up to this point. Now it will expand and deepen as a new cast of characters is woven into the film's fabric.
"Que raro!"
A movie by Almodovar, and no surprise it's marvellous. I decided to watch this one after seeing Hable Con Ella and being stunned by it. I don't know which one's better, but both are worth seeing for sure.
Penelope Cruz, who's usually in the role of charming woman, is an average girl on this movie. Perhaps below average, as she gets pregnant from a transvestite and has a fairly crappy life in general. And the head character, Cecilia Roth as Manuela, is simply a delight to watch. Absolutely no mistakes and flaws throughout the movie, no weird scenes, and everything linked perfectly. The plot not only tells a sad story perfectly articulately, but it also puts a mirror on the lives of people from extraordinary walks of life. Not to mention it feels European to the bone, the movie is completely different from any other European, American, or Latin movie I've seen.
By all means, WATCH IT! Absolutely a piece to be added to your DVD collection. 10/10 from me.
Penelope Cruz, who's usually in the role of charming woman, is an average girl on this movie. Perhaps below average, as she gets pregnant from a transvestite and has a fairly crappy life in general. And the head character, Cecilia Roth as Manuela, is simply a delight to watch. Absolutely no mistakes and flaws throughout the movie, no weird scenes, and everything linked perfectly. The plot not only tells a sad story perfectly articulately, but it also puts a mirror on the lives of people from extraordinary walks of life. Not to mention it feels European to the bone, the movie is completely different from any other European, American, or Latin movie I've seen.
By all means, WATCH IT! Absolutely a piece to be added to your DVD collection. 10/10 from me.
- Exiled_Archangel
- Mar 9, 2003
- Permalink
I first saw this movie at the Seattle Film Festival and was really blown away by it. What a adventurous story this is. Almodovar has been consistently making one great film after another. He is one of the most prolific directors alive today. He never shies away from interesting material. And he is always pursuing new things stylistically. The acting in this film is superb also. High calliber actors everywhere doing the best work of their lives. I especially liked Cecilia Rath's performance - simple and no-nonsense stuff. How do we get more films like this made? I wander if Almodovar can sustain work on this scale in the future. I really hope he does and I plan to see every one of his films.
- samuelding85
- Nov 25, 2004
- Permalink
- EThompsonUMD
- Aug 15, 2002
- Permalink
Todo sobre mi madre / All about my mother starts very well with an introduction of Manuela Coleman (refers to La flor de mi secreto, another Almodóvar-movie) and her son Esteban. Esteban documents his mother's life as a writer, hence the title of the movie. When pursuing an autograph of stage actress Huma Esteban dies (the car accident well executed by the way). His heart is transplanted to another person, his mother as a hospital worker is able to track that person down. After following her son's heart to La Coruña she follows her own heart back to Barcelona, where her personal history really lies with a background as prostitute. She meets Agrado, a former co-worker, and Sister Rosa. She frequently visits the play "A Streetcar named Desire" and finally meets Huma and drug-addicted Nina back-stage. After the principal story is set out, many interactions and twists will of course follow.
Pedro Almodóvar makes clever use of several devices to lift this out of the ordinary: Actors in the play being replaced by other actors in the movie. He uses red (and black) to signify that lives and burdens are passed on from one character to the other. The story frequently shifts focus to keep us interested. The performance of A Streetcar Named Desire and references to All About Eve (among others) all meant as play-in-the-play and to comment the story as a meta-story. The play reflects real life, but is also an abstraction of it. The story takes place mainly in Barcelona, synonymous for modernity.
From the strong beginning onwards Almodóvar is however unable to maintain the high level he started with. It is just not well-structured enough when seen as a whole and therefore the quality is uneven. It all ends a bit like superior melodrama on soap level, and he can do much better than that.
But Almodóvar has great visual talent: The way the opening credits roll for example, but also Manuela leaving and returning Barcelona by train in a short shot of two trains. From this he went on to explore all positives mentioned here to make the far superior Hable con ella / Talk to Her and La mala educación / Bad Education, both better structured and more visually imaginative.
Pedro Almodóvar makes clever use of several devices to lift this out of the ordinary: Actors in the play being replaced by other actors in the movie. He uses red (and black) to signify that lives and burdens are passed on from one character to the other. The story frequently shifts focus to keep us interested. The performance of A Streetcar Named Desire and references to All About Eve (among others) all meant as play-in-the-play and to comment the story as a meta-story. The play reflects real life, but is also an abstraction of it. The story takes place mainly in Barcelona, synonymous for modernity.
From the strong beginning onwards Almodóvar is however unable to maintain the high level he started with. It is just not well-structured enough when seen as a whole and therefore the quality is uneven. It all ends a bit like superior melodrama on soap level, and he can do much better than that.
But Almodóvar has great visual talent: The way the opening credits roll for example, but also Manuela leaving and returning Barcelona by train in a short shot of two trains. From this he went on to explore all positives mentioned here to make the far superior Hable con ella / Talk to Her and La mala educación / Bad Education, both better structured and more visually imaginative.
Pedro Almodovar is the greatest living Spanish director. With astounding ease, humor and and uncanny ability to balance tragedy and comedy, he returns in "All About My Mother" to the tone, characters and themes that have made his movies beloved around the world. This film glides graciously from scenes of powerful intimacy and pain to others of outrageous humor, each time transitioning so effortlessly as to seem almost improvised or documentary-like. Undoubtedly, this must be because Almodovar's story lines and characters are often inspired by his own actors, so that fiction and reality seem to blend almost unnoticeably. But above all, the film is unequivocally orchestrated by a master artist story-teller who knows how to weave several story lines together in such a way that he shows us life from his uniquely personal view while making it seem like it is in fact our own.
"All About My Mother" is, like all of Almodovar's films, filled with splendid female roles, spectacular acting, ravishing colors, meticulous cinematography (his second time utilizing the wide-screen scope format,) editing and music. The dialogue -- both in Spanish and English subtitles -- sparkles with a crispness that is characteristically Almodovar's (think of the line, "Prada is good for nuns."!)
Whatever else you miss this year, do not miss this wonderful film. If this is your first Almodovar film, you'll understand why he can be credited with singlehandedly putting Spanish cinema back on the international map in the mid 1980's. If it isn't, you will see the master at the peak of his powers, enjoy a dazzling ensemble of veteran actresses play parts like they don't make anymore and understand what all the hoopla is about.
"All About My Mother" is, like all of Almodovar's films, filled with splendid female roles, spectacular acting, ravishing colors, meticulous cinematography (his second time utilizing the wide-screen scope format,) editing and music. The dialogue -- both in Spanish and English subtitles -- sparkles with a crispness that is characteristically Almodovar's (think of the line, "Prada is good for nuns."!)
Whatever else you miss this year, do not miss this wonderful film. If this is your first Almodovar film, you'll understand why he can be credited with singlehandedly putting Spanish cinema back on the international map in the mid 1980's. If it isn't, you will see the master at the peak of his powers, enjoy a dazzling ensemble of veteran actresses play parts like they don't make anymore and understand what all the hoopla is about.
I'd heard this was a masterpiece, so I thought I'd catch up on it. Although I enjoyed it (some interesting themes and eccentric characters), I found the twists and turns of the plot more suited to a soap opera. Maybe the issues were more hard- hitting in 1999 and hadn't been covered as much in movies, but watching it in 2020, I've seen better films deal with the subject matter much more effectively and, moreover, realistically.
Still, it was watchable and had an interesting plot if you could suspend your disbelief. Definitely worth seeing for anyone who has an interest in Spanish cinema like a do, especially if you're a fan of Almodóvar.
Still, it was watchable and had an interesting plot if you could suspend your disbelief. Definitely worth seeing for anyone who has an interest in Spanish cinema like a do, especially if you're a fan of Almodóvar.
- keenanchris
- Dec 9, 2020
- Permalink
Almodóvar's colours are so glowing and rich and gorgeous I found myself forgetting to read the subtitles once or twice. How does he get colours like that? It can't just be a matter of film stocks. I wish I could speak Spanish. I wouldn't have to look away; I could bask completely, not just intermittently, in the warmth - which is what the film is there for.
Only one of the criticisms I've seen levelled at "All About My Mother" strikes me as more than merely flippant or ridiculous - Mike D'Angelo pointed it out in a short review, and much as I love the film, I must admit he has a point, one I ought to have noticed. To quote: "... the celebratory, groovy-woman-power ethos that permeates the film is somewhat inimical to drama ... The women of Mother are so unfailingly resilient and benevolent and - there's really no other word but 'fabulous' - that the picture never achieves a real sense of urgency..."
Ya got me. It doesn't. Of course, now that I realise that there's less dramatic tension than their ought to be, I don't love the film any less. I don't even miss the dramatic tension (which would, nonetheless, help if it were there). Partly it's because of the colours. Almodóvar has made a film for us to wallow in; and if that's all we can do with it, at least the luscious colours - along with the music, and truly lovable, rather than merely eccentric and fascinating, characters - allow us to wallow properly.
I will say that those who think Almodóvar has wimped out and become politically correct are utterly wrong. Political correctness has nothing to do with content; it has everything to do with treading gingerly and being stilted. All About My Mother, stilted? Rubbish - it's heartfelt, and Almodóvar's direction is as sure-footed and fluent as ever.
Only one of the criticisms I've seen levelled at "All About My Mother" strikes me as more than merely flippant or ridiculous - Mike D'Angelo pointed it out in a short review, and much as I love the film, I must admit he has a point, one I ought to have noticed. To quote: "... the celebratory, groovy-woman-power ethos that permeates the film is somewhat inimical to drama ... The women of Mother are so unfailingly resilient and benevolent and - there's really no other word but 'fabulous' - that the picture never achieves a real sense of urgency..."
Ya got me. It doesn't. Of course, now that I realise that there's less dramatic tension than their ought to be, I don't love the film any less. I don't even miss the dramatic tension (which would, nonetheless, help if it were there). Partly it's because of the colours. Almodóvar has made a film for us to wallow in; and if that's all we can do with it, at least the luscious colours - along with the music, and truly lovable, rather than merely eccentric and fascinating, characters - allow us to wallow properly.
I will say that those who think Almodóvar has wimped out and become politically correct are utterly wrong. Political correctness has nothing to do with content; it has everything to do with treading gingerly and being stilted. All About My Mother, stilted? Rubbish - it's heartfelt, and Almodóvar's direction is as sure-footed and fluent as ever.
The characters in the film seem to lack a proper father figure. Theres a huge gap left in their lives with the absence of a masculine figure and because of that the women in this film tend to be a mess but however they push themselves to be stronger.. and the few male characters shown in the film are transvestites except the son of the protagonist with whom the plot begins as he queries into the identity of his never-seen father. The film is essentially about coping up with loss and acceptance.
- vijaythepro
- Nov 10, 2019
- Permalink
I certainly will be in the minority with this vote, but I watched this on video with two other people and we all hated it, couldn't understand why it got such great reviews and ratings. I've got to believe that most people who like this movie don't understand Spanish, because the acting is simply not very nuanced or believable - the bottom line seems to have been "Play it like a soap opera" because it's just so bad in a campy way - corny music that swells & tries to yank the viewer around, corny writing that's not very original, corny camera angles (The Director as Ego - "Don't forget it's me, Pedro Almodovar, making this film.") And it has that awful feature some European movies have which take themselves too seriously, the "I-am-dead-at-the-center" dialogue of the main characters ("Feel my pain") who just seem to be (when they're not crying or screaming) moving around like zombies with no intonation to their speech. I really wanted to like this movie - I don't think I've missed any of the small, deliberate things that can make a strange movie better than the sum of its parts. Be forewarned - it's nowhere near as good as most of the people reviewing it here say. I'm not a knuckle-headed Big-Action-Hollywood-Ra-Ra type, I see lots of foreign movies & enjoy them. But this one is wooden and melodramatic at the same time. Strange. Ick.