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Movie Review
Talk to Her
By Todd Heustess Published December 29, 2002
US Release: November 22, 2002
Directed by: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Javier Cámara , Darío Grandinetti , Leonor Watling
R
Running Time: 112 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $9,284,000
Directed by: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Javier Cámara , Darío Grandinetti , Leonor Watling
R
Running Time: 112 minutes
Domestic Box Office: $9,284,000
A-
Cinematic poetry with a wonderfully original, thought-provoking plot
Talk to Her, the new movie by Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almod?var, is totally unlike any of his previous and that proves to be a pleasant surprise.
Talk to Her is cinematic poetry with a wonderfully original, thought-provoking plot, a beautiful score composed by Alberto Iglesias, and subtle, honest performances by everyone in the cast, (especially Javier C?mara as Benigno). It is a deeply touching, spiritual look at friendship and the power of faith and it left me quite moved when it was over.
In his previous films (All About My Mother, High Heels, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) Almod?var served up outrageous humor and situations mixed with female character-driven narratives. In Talk to Her, the lead characters are as usual women but because the two women are in comas, the focus is on Benigno and Marco. Benigno?s girlfriend Lydia, a famous bullfighter in Spain, becomes comatose after being gored by a bull. At the hospital he meets Marco, a nurse who is caring for another comatose patient, Alicia, a young dancer injured in a car accident. The men develop a friendship through their pain and loneliness.
The movie moves easily and effortless between the past where we learn about the relationships these two men had with the comatose women, the present as they "talk" to Lydia and Alicia, and occasional fantasy sequences. The jumps back and forward in time are never confusing or contrived. As Benigno?s and Marco?s friendship develops, the movie has a couple of plot twists that are quite surprising and it would not be fair to anyone reading this to have these developments revealed in advance. In fact, the plot twists/surprises had a tremendous impact on my view of the movie.
Until that point, I was struggling with the movie, not as emotionally engaged as I hoped to be. I kept thinking to myself, "I know I should be liking this more, but I'm not." The film had not grabbed me yet, and I was feeling a little disappointed and a little let down. That all changed, however, in the last twenty minutes. As the movie nears its conclusion, contradictory emotions of sadness and hurt are juxtaposed with feelings of renewed faith and hope. That all this works is a tribute to Almod?var and his talented cast.
I have a feeling that fans of the "outrageous" Almod?var may be a bit disappointed at first with Talk to Her, but they must remember that their patience will be rewarded. Almod?var is still a provocateur at heart, though, and in Talk to Her the "rebel" in Almod?var manifests itself in a sequence involving a shrinking man and a giant vagina. Still, the focus is on Marco and Benigno and their pain, their loneliness, their desire to connect with the women in their lives along with each other. Talk to Her is the best movie about male friendship since Good Will Hunting and it deserves all the accolades it is and will be receiving.
Talk to Her is cinematic poetry with a wonderfully original, thought-provoking plot, a beautiful score composed by Alberto Iglesias, and subtle, honest performances by everyone in the cast, (especially Javier C?mara as Benigno). It is a deeply touching, spiritual look at friendship and the power of faith and it left me quite moved when it was over.
In his previous films (All About My Mother, High Heels, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) Almod?var served up outrageous humor and situations mixed with female character-driven narratives. In Talk to Her, the lead characters are as usual women but because the two women are in comas, the focus is on Benigno and Marco. Benigno?s girlfriend Lydia, a famous bullfighter in Spain, becomes comatose after being gored by a bull. At the hospital he meets Marco, a nurse who is caring for another comatose patient, Alicia, a young dancer injured in a car accident. The men develop a friendship through their pain and loneliness.
The movie moves easily and effortless between the past where we learn about the relationships these two men had with the comatose women, the present as they "talk" to Lydia and Alicia, and occasional fantasy sequences. The jumps back and forward in time are never confusing or contrived. As Benigno?s and Marco?s friendship develops, the movie has a couple of plot twists that are quite surprising and it would not be fair to anyone reading this to have these developments revealed in advance. In fact, the plot twists/surprises had a tremendous impact on my view of the movie.
Until that point, I was struggling with the movie, not as emotionally engaged as I hoped to be. I kept thinking to myself, "I know I should be liking this more, but I'm not." The film had not grabbed me yet, and I was feeling a little disappointed and a little let down. That all changed, however, in the last twenty minutes. As the movie nears its conclusion, contradictory emotions of sadness and hurt are juxtaposed with feelings of renewed faith and hope. That all this works is a tribute to Almod?var and his talented cast.
I have a feeling that fans of the "outrageous" Almod?var may be a bit disappointed at first with Talk to Her, but they must remember that their patience will be rewarded. Almod?var is still a provocateur at heart, though, and in Talk to Her the "rebel" in Almod?var manifests itself in a sequence involving a shrinking man and a giant vagina. Still, the focus is on Marco and Benigno and their pain, their loneliness, their desire to connect with the women in their lives along with each other. Talk to Her is the best movie about male friendship since Good Will Hunting and it deserves all the accolades it is and will be receiving.
Todd's Grade: A-
Todd's Overall Grading: 13 graded movies
| A | 38.5% | |
| B | 61.5% | |
| C | 0.0% | |
| D | 0.0% | |
| F | 0.0% |
