Review of Talk to Her (2002) by Millo T — 03 Apr 2010

I went to this movie having started to watch it (and seemed boring) and knowing main things about the plot that I liked, so, I was a little confused, and I started to watch the movie to see. Well, first, I must say that for me, it's clear that Almodovar does better scripts for comedies than for dramas.

Even, the use of common people and ordinary (even in the sense of vulgar) expressions, which fit wonderfully in comedy, take a little out of sense in drama. And yeah, the movie starts quite boring, lacking good sentences, and with all that bullfighting story that goes to nowhere.

.. However, as the movie advances, the strength of the original idea of the story starts growing. It is true that I would have developed the script quite different from that idea (there are too many lucky coincidences, and, for me, there are some things that would have been better to expose directly, and not develop any more, because doing that, they loose the original lyrism and shocking effect, and become more daily and close to reality; sometimes it's better not to show how things happen, just tell that happened).

Also, as I said, the bullfighting story seems to me out of place, although, at the end, Dario Grandinetti makes a good role as the realistic friend. Many cinematographic, musical and theater references, some of them looked more disgressions because there wasn't nothing interesting to fill the script with, and that puts you out of the movie (I only agree with these kind of disgressions when they have to do with the movie itself, the general tone of story, or, if not, if they are very good), but some of them were good.

But the love story is very well developed, also the past of the characters, and, as my collegue Flixterman says, that's the wonderful capacity of Almodovar, to take from a weird situation and extract how the beauty is possible (I agree with that enormous capacity of Almodovar; what I don't agree is when he gets into some worlds in such a weird way that there is no beauty possible and you can not extract any lesson of universal value to mankind.

But that's not the case of this movie), and Javier Camara character is tenderful and adorable, you can reject and at the same time love him and at the same time judge and not be able to judge him.

Also, I must underline the enormous capacity of Almodovar of bringing so many good actresses to his movie just to make very short roles, if you see the cast (although they mainly play just a couple of minutes or second actings, the weight of the movie is taken by Rosario Flores and mainly always wonderful Leonor Watling), it's enormous (even there was a cinematographic reference with one of these actresses that made me laugh what I hadn't in years, it was incredible, but for understanding that, you must see Almodovar's movie 'Women at the verge of a nervous breakdown', my favorite Almodovar movie, by the way).

So, and as conclussion, good start point as idea, character, good developed love story, fantastic Watling, but I would have told the story in a very different way to give strength to the message (however, this way to tell the story has its own advantages).

In any case, to judge it simply, not a perfect, but good and recommended movie.