I want to improve my Spanish. One of my learning strategies is watching Spanish-language movies. That’s why I have been watching movies by Pedro Almodovar, lately. A few days ago, I saw Abrazos Rotos. I really enjoyed it. Here’s why.
As usual with Almodovar, the story is over the top.
A blind script writer has changed names to Harry Cain. His real name is Matteo, but he has convinced everybody to call him Harry.
In one of the first scenes, we see him seducing a beautiful woman he picked up in the street by asking her to guide him across the road. He then invites her to his apartment to read the newspaper to him. He asks her to describe herself and then touches her to verify what she said is true (which is a great seduction move for a blind man). They make love on the couch. We only see the back of the couch with an occasional body part rising above it while we hear the grunts and sighs of the amorous couple. After they have finished, we get a glimpse of her beautiful breasts. Even when I replayed the scene slowly, they were nothing but a fleeting glimpse. The scene is more arousing by far than many-a-clip on Pornhub. This is just one in a string of memorable scenes (e.g., the rich businessman and the lip reader).
Then we go back to the time he could still see. He is a director making a movie financed by a rich businessman, under the condition that the rich man’s girlfriend (Penelope Cruz) will be the lead actress. On the set, the director falls in love with her. His love is reciprocated, and she leaves the rich man. They are very happy. Then they have a fatal car accident. She is killed, and he becomes blind. That is the moment he decides to change his name.
This is just one of the twists and turns of the plot.
What makes this a great movie?
The story is captivating, with many strong characters.
The actors in Almodovars’ movies are always charismatic. Their voices sound so deep and sonorous, so Spanish. Great actors don’t have to do anything, and Penelope Cruz is one of those, she lights up every scene she is in. She is one of a group of actors who have been in his films for many years. Women (and there are many of them in his films) are strong. According to him, this is because, as a little boy, he was close to his mother all the time and heard her and her friends and female relatives talking.
Colors are important to Almodovar. I asked a friend if he remembered anything from Hable con Ella, an Almodovar film from 2002, which was a big arthouse success in Holland. It was a time in our lives when we often went to the cinema to see all the new arty movies. The only thing he remembered was the color blue being important in the film. This shows you how important colors are in Almodovar movies.
(From Hable con Ella, I only remembered Caetano Veloso singing the song Cucurrucucu) .
In this movie, the colors are rich and saturated. The primary color is red, the color of passion and blood. It returns in dresses, shirts, wallpaper, makeup, etc.
Anyway, you should watch this movie, it will enchant you. Unfortunately, it is not on Netflix or Prime, I borrowed the DVD from our municipal library.