Sin #30: El Melodrama

Manuela lives with his seventeen year-old son Esteban, who wants to become an author and write about his mother’s story to finally reveal his origins since Manuela is adamant about speaking about his father and her past.

One day they go to see a play and wait in the rain to get an autograph from one of the actresses, in a rush Esteban is hit by a car and killed.

Manuela, heartbroken, decides to go back to Barcelona in search of Esteban’s father who now works as a transsexual prostitute. In Barcelona she meets a nun named Rosa that cares for the prostitutes and helps Manuela, thinking she’s one of the girls. They become close and Rosa finally confesses she’s pregnant from Esteban’s father and is HIV positive. Meanwhile Manuela meets the actress of the play and becomes her personal assistant.

The brilliance of “Todo Sobre mi Madre” is that it introduces several characters and fleshes them out as real human beings. Pedro Almodovar’s film is filled with wonderful performances and emotionally potent moments. There may not be a filmmaker alive that loves his women as much as him; he writes characters that burst out of the screen and refuse to leave our imaginations. Manuela, Rosa, Huma and the others are so delicately created and played that one is totally transfixed by their stories. The same can be said about the women of “Volver”, my favorite of his movies (and the best of Penelope Cruz’s performances, although she’s also amazing in this movie).

“Todo Sobre mi Madre” is clearly influenced by Hollywood dramas from the fifties, especially “All about Eve” with Bette Davis. Eve Harrington’s name is mentioned, a character confesses to start smoking thanks to Davis and at the beginning of the movie Manuela and Esteban watch the movie at their home.

I saw “All about Eve” recently and was fascinated at its story of power and obsession. It may be one of the best movies ever made about fame and deceit propelled by amazing performances from the entire cast. “Todo Sobre mi Madre” isn’t in any way a rehash of Eve, it’s merely a lovely tribute as Almodovar plunges into unforgettable melodrama.

It’s impossible to discuss Almodovar without mentioning his visual style that saturates the colors creating a stylized and visually appealing palette. It may not be realistic but it creates its own universe, perfectly complementing the heavy emotions and larger-than-life characters. Every one of his movies is an experience than delves into the human condition.