Review of Pain and Glory (2019) by Nickthecritick — 14 Nov 2021

Here you have Almodovar greatest masterpiece. The plot is quite simple : Director Salvador Mallo finds himself in both a physical and creative crisis. The days of his poor childhood in a small town in the Valencia area come back to his memory, a film from which he had ended up dissociating himself once finished and many other fundamental moments in his life.

In this film Almodovar talks about himself, making a real semi-autobiographical film. The opening scene has such a great visual power that it cannot be described because it must then be contextualized with the film's ending. Everything comes back wonderfully, each shot is never an end in itself but always functional to the next. The acting is phenomenal too, Banderas provides a terrific subtle performance that deserves to be regarded as the best of his career. This film is the masterpiece of the great Spanish director.