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>> TALK TO HER

Starring: Javier Camara, Dario Grandinetti, more ...
Director: Pedro Almodovar
Genre: Drama (Foreign)




originally titled "HABLE CON ELLA" in its original language, this movie is about two men who become friends based on a shared love of women who are in comas, although their individual circumstances are completely different. as usual, renowned writer-director pedro almodovar weighs in with a compelling story in this spanish movie. known from other previous movies, including the most talked-about movie, all about my mother, pedro did a good job in portraying the different beatiful screenplays. this film, in fact, won the best screenplay in oscar 2003. the movie is bookeneded by dance performers, with characters from the movie watching from the audience, and also features a movie-within-the-movie.

haunting funny disturbing beautiful. this is quite a great movie, more like "all about my mother" than it is like almodovar's earlier movies -- i.e., more sedate, serious, meditative, but still funny, and outrageous at times. for the first time that i have seen, almodovar focuses more on the male characters. the plot is sure to be scandalous or offensive and i find many of them quite disturbing actually, and it is at the very least provocative. and that's maybe why i only give 2 stars, in spite of the good reviews and the artistic presentation. i mean, don't get me wrong.. i love them all, but the story just really creeps under my skin.

the story opens with this beautiful play about two women on stage who walks around with their eyes closed, the other is following another. in the audience, there were two guys (benigno & marco).. and one of them actually cried from watching the play, marco did. then the screen goes to a set in the hospital, where benigno was taking care of a comatose patient and telling the story about the play to her.

on the other hand, marco saw an interview on tv on a girl matador. he was a writer and was interested in writing the story about the girl matador. and so he went and asked his editor who then allow him to go for the interview. after the first time they met, they became lovers. the girl matador told stories about how her father wanted her to push herself to stand out and not just be like any other girls. to be strong. but then she got injured during her 'fight' with the bull and went into the hospital in a vegetative state.

in the hospital, marco saw benigno taking care of a girl. benigno was a male nurse who was hired to take care of a girl who got into an accident and went in a coma. she was a ballerina who used to go to the ballet academy right in front of benigno's house. he fell in love with her and fate made him the one who takes care of her. and fate met benigno & marco again for the second time and they become friends from the shared experience of taking care the girl they love.

the ending was touchy, the movie-within-the-movie was interesting.. but still, i find that some of the story is very provocative and disturbing. the fact that benigno raped the girl he's taking care of and made her pregnant *while she's in a come*, and he ended up paying for it in jail. it's a disturbing love story, i'd say.

but i gotta admit, the screenplay was just really beautiful. there is one scene where marco and his girl were at a party and they were watching a singer singing a sad song... but it was just a beautiful song.. just watching it from the tv and listening to the song, i was drown into it.. such a beautiful scene! or when it goes to the stage showing the symbology of the actors' feelings through the play with beautiful ballet moves or during the bull fight. ballerina and bull fight, two different scenes, yet almodovar was able to bring the similarity in it.

yet, i only give two stars.. although i'm still contemplating whether i should give it two or three stars. i mean.. i love the art way of how this movie was made, but i just very much disturbed with the story.. i think that's just how almodovar tells a story. even with his other movies, i was always have mixed feelings about it. and just like this one.. in fact, this is one of the hardest review i've made so far.. my suggestion? go watch it, and tell me what you think... ...


>> rated by : : sLesTa | [ ]

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