Review of Broken Embraces (2009) by Dean M — 09 Jul 2011

Magnificent! Pedro Almodóvar continues to flirt with Hitchcockian high-style melodrama, even as he defaults to kooky, primary-coloured comedy. The Spanish film journeys between the past and the present, and interweaves diverse stories and viewpoints, to construct a fascinating drama full of twists and turns. The plot has a complex, but perfect screenplay with use of flashbacks with a marvelous development of the characters.

This is a teasing fantasy about cinema, romance, possibility, comedy, tragedy and charm. Penelope Cruz seesaws between the styles of Audrey Hepburn and Tippi Hedren, but has gained a peppery screen personality of her own, which makes her more than just an old movie ghost, while Lluis Homar is restrained, complicated and potentially a breakout character actor superstar.