Movie Review

La Mala Educación

I wasn?t particularly impressed with Pedro Almodovar?s Bad Education, as while it diverted me for a while I eventually just lost interest in both the story and its characters. Almodovar, who wrote and directed Talk to Her (B-) prior to this film, specializes in controversial material. And the one thing I do give him props for is being able to come up with situations that can really weird you out. I rarely come upon films that make me feel awkward, as that factor can actually make a really good film if executed properly (it can be irresistible in a very dark way). While this film did achieve that nuance at times, its effect was never consistent.

This film is about a struggling actor, Ignacio (Gael Garcia Bernal), who has written a screenplay about an incident that happened to him when he was a kid. Ignacio looks up the address of an old classmate, Enrique (Fele Martinez), who?s a film director and who happens to be looking for work to commit to, and pitches him the concept. These two guys were also in love with each other during their childhood, and being reacquainted (Enrique accepts the pitch) brings back a feeling between the two of them that has lingered over the years. The script that Ignacio has written pertains to a sexual abuse situation between he and a priest, and how he and Enrique were involved with each other emotionally when this act took place.

This film focuses on homosexuals, and while it does feature the edgy subject of priests molesting kids, that?s not a major part in this film?s story. Bad Education mostly brings us up to speed with Ignacio and Enrique?s relationship as children up to the present time. Part of the story is also about Ignacio?s desire to play the main part in the film, which Enrique is skeptical about, and to get the part means that Ignacio has to play around with Enrique. The film?s basic theme is doing whatever you can to get what you want, or having the passion to fight for something.

The film is bound to make some people feel really strange due to the gay sexual situations, the priest abuse, and the cross-dressing subplot between two characters. That latter part is in the beginning and it was actually the least interesting segment of the film for me (I could argue that it?s pointless). The film started kind of shaky as a result (the opening credits sequence, however, is quite dazzling), but as it progressed I was intrigued by the script situation and was curious about how matters were going to sort out.

Bad Education works for a while, but only marginally, due to the performances and Almodovar?s occasionally tense direction with the music and very well done cinematography. There are scenes that are haunting due to the way he stylizes them, and for about an hour or so this film is fairly engaging for that reason. However, after that point the film started to lose me emotionally, as its web of intricate puzzles started to feel like they were out of a different picture.

One of the reasons I didn't love Talk to Her was because I didn?t care for every character, and also because three quarters of the way through it asks the viewer to sympathize with a rapist, and that wasn?t going to happen. That film is highly regarded by some filmgoers, though it is a love-it or hate-it picture for many people; I didn?t love it or hate it, as my opinion was more so in the middle. The film?s direction was top notch in terms of tone, and the acting was damn fine across the board, but its story didn?t lure me in every step of the way (and the story is what it usually comes down to in any film). Theoretically it?s a C+ film in my book, but the B- is more out of respect for the ensemble.

Almodovar?s direction in Bad Education isn?t as strong (in comparison) via the tone but the film also doesn?t have a rapist-like scene that kills off sympathy like Talk to Her. However, it never really seemed like this film had anything important to express. While it was interesting to see if Ignacio would actually get his way with this script (and what would come of the priest), I was never really moved by much; and since I?m not gay, its sensual scenes didn?t play well with me. I don?t have a problem with anybody being gay, but it was a bit uncomfortable to watch this film?s steamy material.

When I stated earlier that I appreciate awkwardness in films when it?s executed properly, I?m referring to the scenes dealing with the priest. I?m not saying this in a creepy standpoint as if I actually enjoyed the reality of this subplot, but there is an obvious awkwardness in witnessing something like this and it drew me in. In a way the subplot feels like it?s out of a Larry Clark film, especially with a few slow-motion shots of shirtless kids jumping into a pond (while a very eerily placed but ideal tune plays over the footage). There are also parts of this film that feel like they?re out of a David Lynch film, like Mulholland Dr. (the opera part), mostly due to the kind of people involved in the scenes.

A film that consists of one awkward situation after another that I really liked is Chuck & Buck (B+). It?s not really an entertaining film (though it has moments of comedy, and plenty of black humor bits), but it examines human behavior and specifically a person with mental problems who doesn?t have the common sense, socially, that most people do. In that film, Buck is a grown-up who is still a child, emotionally, and he doesn?t understand the difference between what is appropriate and inappropriate in terms of his actions. It can be a hard film to watch because the situations he steps into are very real (and can be incredibly uncomfortable), and the film really affected me.

Another film that made me feel really weird through the style but was also off-putting due to the storytelling was Paul Thomas Anderson?s Punch-Drunk Love (borderline B+/A-). I felt like the central character, Barry Eagan, throughout the whole film, and I really dug Anderson?s ability to pull that off. Everything he does in the style/editing works in favor of Barry?s emotions, and it?s literally like stepping into Eagan?s mind. It?s also not a film for a lot of people (the story is very strange), but I absolutely connected with Barry the entire time.

Bad Education can make you feel ?off? at times, but I was never really attached to anyone; besides Ignacio?s desperation for a career, I didn?t relate to anything else. Almodovar?s style pulled me in for about half of the film?s duration, but it got to a point where his visual tricks just weren?t enough to inspire an emotional reaction out of me. The script was only mildly successful, in the sense that the story kind of diverted me, but that was mostly because of the style that supported it. I also had an indifferent reaction to how things wrapped up at the finale, which isn?t exactly a great state of mind to leave the theater in.

But some people really like Pedro Almodovar?s work, as he is a unique filmmaker and is brave (which is why he is acclaimed amongst many critics and film buffs). I wasn?t really a fan of his film, All About My Mother either, but I wanted to see Bad Education because he is good with presenting ?different? material (even if the sum of all the pieces don?t mix with me), which isn?t something you see in films all that often. Being different can be good, and while I wasn?t an outright fan of this film I at least have respect for his attempts.

Lee's Grade: C+
Ranked #58 of 120 between Beyond the Sea (#57) and Bridget Jones 2 (#59) for 2004 movies.

A	0.4%
B	30.0%
C	61.7%
D	8.0%
F	0.0%