Viewed in
2008
Premise
Two Spanish sisters deal with death; one deals with her dead, abusive husband, the other deals with her mother's ghost.
Who should watch
Penelope Cruz fans. Those who can handle subtitled films. Also, those who want to see great female acting.
Thoughts
I loved this film. It was funny and touching.
In the U.S. we only view Penelope Cruz as eye candy who could barely speak English. But in this film, she led the way in a greatly acted mostly cast. Not only was she gorgeous, she deserved her nomination for best actress.
I wished there were more films like this, with the central characters being full-fleshed female characters. All of them, young and old, were complex, smart and human. There were funny moments, but also non-sappy emotional moments, as they dealt with death, daily struggles and past regrets.
Even though director Pedro Almodovar is gay, he showed his appreciation of the female body. As a straight man, I enjoyed the occasional gratuitous shots of Cruz. While they were not related to the storyline, I felt they were done with fun, and not meaningless.
For those who are tired of male-centric stories, this film is for you to enjoy.
What I would change
I thought the last act had one too many soap opera character revelations.
