The latest film from treasured auteur Pedro Almodóvar is a sun-dappled journey exploring life, art and the ownership of stories that are told. Filmmaker Elsa suffers debilitating migraines. She also feels stuck creatively. Making money directing commercials, she yearns to write a new film. Meanwhile, her friends have their own problems; Patricia is concerned her husband is cheating, while Natalia is grieving from a devastating loss. Elsa puts these friendships to the test when she decides to incorporate elements from Natalia and Patricia’s lives into her autobiographical script. Offering generous servings of his signature bold and vibrant style, as well as camp humour, Almodóvar’s self-reflexive drama inventively plays with narrative structure, blurring the lines between reality, fiction and memory, while exploring questions around the healing power of art and the morality of artists drawing inspiration from the lives of others. Kimberley Sheehan, Lead Programmer A Curzon release. Screen: NFT2. Screening details: Audio description headset; Closed captions (CC) smart glasses; English language subtitles.
