The Skin That I Inhabit (Almodóvar)

[B-side]

Quite possibly my most anticipated film of the year. Set to release September 9th in Spain, with a fall US release to follow, I'm sure.


Based on Thierry Jonquet's novel "Mygale", this revenge tale tells the story of a plastic surgeon on the hunt for the men who raped his daughter.


It’s difficult to define and although it comes close to the terror genre — something that appeals to me that I’ve never done — I won’t respect any of its rules. It’s the harshest film I’ve ever written and Banderas’ character is brutal.

http://bitcast-a-sm.bitgravity.com/slashfilm/wp/wp-content/images/ZZ3090867D.jpg

More posters. (http://www.slashfilm.com/posters-pedro-almodovars-the-skin-inhabit/?utm_source=Movie+Magic&utm_medium=twitter)

[Pop Trash]

Nice. That reminds me, I still haven't seen Broken Embraces.

[KK2.0]

If i'm not mistaken he produced Alex De La Iglesia's Accion Mutante, but i've never heard of him being actually into genre movies before, cool. Was already looking foward to his new movie but this piece kicked my interest higher.

[Grouchy]

If i'm not mistaken he produced Alex De La Iglesia's Accion Mutante, but i've never heard of him being actually into genre movies before, cool. Was already looking foward to his new movie but this piece kicked my interest higher.
In my opinion, noir and melodrama have always been huge influences in his filmmaking. But his stories have always been too intimate to be considered genre movies.

I have the feeling this is gonna be incredible, by the way.

[B-side]

Cool new teaser (http://twitchfilm.com/news/2011/06/new-teaser-for-almodovars-the-skin-i-live-in-is-dark-twisted-genius.php)

[MadMan]

I'm reminded of "Eyes Without a Face" here. Sweet.

[monolith94]

In my opinion, noir and melodrama have always been huge influences in his filmmaking. But his stories have always been too intimate to be considered genre movies.

I have the feeling this is gonna be incredible, by the way.
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown can, imho, be considered as part of the screwball comedy genre.

[Ivan Drago]

The more and more I see the new trailer for it, the more excited I get.

EolQSTTTpI4

[MadMan]

That looks fantastic. I'll admit I've never seen an Almodovar movie before, so I don't know where to start.

[Ezee E]

That looks fantastic. I'll admit I've never seen an Almodovar movie before, so I don't know where to start.
Any of them really.

[Boner M]

So the main criticism I'm reading of this film in relation to previous PA films is that it lacks an 'emotional pull' or somesuch irrelevancies... this is the 'director as surgeon' metaphor taken to its logical endpoint, and fashions a frighteningly absurdist depiction of people as screens for projection (really, the best theme for any film), with a very elegantly dissected narrative chronology designed to fuck with our ingrained viewing practices. It's Vertigo and Eyes Without a Face combined, and Almodovar's most formally impressive film to date. Can't wait to see it again.

[B-side]

So the main criticism I'm reading of this film in relation to previous PA films is that it lacks an 'emotional pull' or somesuch irrelevancies... this is the 'director as surgeon' metaphor taken to its logical endpoint, and fashions a frighteningly absurdist depiction of people as screens for projection (really, the best theme for any film), with a very elegantly dissected narrative chronology designed to fuck with our ingrained viewing practices. It's Vertigo and Eyes Without a Face combined, and Almodovar's most formally impressive film to date. Can't wait to see it again.

You're killing me, Smalls.

[B-side]

Should probably get the title of the thread changed to the release title, if some kind mod would assume responsibility for such a grueling task. :D

[Winston*]

The Skin I Inhabit is a much better title than The Skin I Live In.

[number8]

I liked this movie a lot too.

[Qrazy]

That looks fantastic. I'll admit I've never seen an Almodovar movie before, so I don't know where to start.

Talk to Her or Volver.

All about my Mother is ridiculous in a bad way.

[Bosco B Thug]

Went in knowing nothing, and got the full shock of it. But I think I would have appreciated this a bit more if I had known the story beforehand. Nevertheless, I cherished getting the feeling of true surprise, and the film is audacious and effective.

But, the film is too concerned with thriller plotting and superficial events, keeping too much from us and laying it out too ploddingly in rather conventional narrative rhythms. Maybe if I knew where the film was heading, I would've felt them more, but I felt thematic resonance was mostly inert until the final act.

[number8]

Is it just me or was the reveal obviously telegraphed? I mean:

Why would Vera be otherwise dreaming a flashback from Vincente's POV?

[Li Lili]

I saw it a month ago, and I'm personaly not so keen on Almodovar's films, but this one was quite a surprise. I refused to read, see or hear any comments on it before watching it, so I didn't know what it was really about, which surely helped the surprise.
I recommend it, it's very well played, I liked the narrative structure and the way it's shown.

[Ivan Drago]

Comes to me on November 18th. Can't fucking wait!

[Fezzik]

So the main criticism I'm reading of this film in relation to previous PA films is that it lacks an 'emotional pull' or somesuch irrelevancies...

Is this to say emotional pull is irrelevant to this film in particular or do you think it's irrelevant to film in general?

I ask because I know people who think that movies with an emotional center are unforgivable sins.

[Bosco B Thug]

Is it just me or was the reveal obviously telegraphed? I mean:

Why would Vera be otherwise dreaming a flashback from Vincente's POV? Yeah, it's definitely telegraphed, in that there's so much shown before that point. But me, who's pretty slow putting things together...

... I was still considering nonsensical options like Vera is Norma (I even missed reading one of the time cards, so I didn't know whether we had jumped ahead or back), or the dead wife is Vera, or even clinging on to Eyes Without a Face notions that the film was about saving his wife or daughter.

Believe it or not, I didn't figure it out until the very moment he said the -plasty word. The film was made for me, apparently.

[Boner M]

Is this to say emotional pull is irrelevant to this film in particular or do you think it's irrelevant to film in general?

I ask because I know people who think that movies with an emotional center are unforgivable sins.
Just for this particular film.

Also, those people you know are weird.

[Boner M]

Is it just me or was the reveal obviously telegraphed? I mean:

Why would Vera be otherwise dreaming a flashback from Vincente's POV?
Doesn't that flashback begin from Robert's POV though? (I can't remember how obviously it was established to be her dream).

[number8]

Doesn't that flashback begin from Robert's POV though? (I can't remember how obviously it was established to be her dream).

It starts with the two of them in lying in bed. Robert starts twitching like he's having a nightmare and the camera zooms in on his face, then dissolves into his flashback of the wedding.

After the flashback, it cuts back to a shot of them in bed. This time Vera twitches and the camera zooms in on her face, then dissolves to Vincente working at the clothes shop.

It's made pretty obvious that what we're seeing is her dream.

[Fezzik]

Just for this particular film.

Also, those people you know are weird.

Ah, good to know. And yes, they are.

They often chide me on seeking out movies that are emotional, saying that its weird that I get so much from movies that make me cry.

Sometimes, it often seems that they're legitimately afraid of emotions. They cant stand even being around emotional people, even if the emotional outburst is totally, 100% understandable.

One claims to be a buddhist, and acts like that means he is more enlightened then us because he doesnt allow the weakness of emotions to cloud his mind.

Like you said. Weird.

[Bosco B Thug]

It starts with the two of them in lying in bed. Robert starts twitching like he's having a nightmare and the camera zooms in on his face, then dissolves into his flashback of the wedding.

After the flashback, it cuts back to a shot of them in bed. This time Vera twitches and the camera zooms in on her face, then dissolves to Vincente working at the clothes shop.

It's made pretty obvious that what we're seeing is her dream. Ha, I was thinking the whole Norma-is-Vera thing at that point, so I just thought she was dreaming about this guy she was attracted to.

And, considering how idiosyncratic Almodovar is, the cross-fades on their sleeping heads doesn't necessarily blatantly telegraph that these are personalized flashbacks.

But to my credit, I think I should also mention that I sat between two couples (... elderly...) where, up until the end, one was hopelessly confused and was always asking questions to their partner. They may have just been reluctant to commit their brains to the subject matter, of course.

[Spinal]

Thought I would like this one, for sure. But, no such luck.

It certainly has many redeeming qualities. Like all Almodóvar, it looks beautiful. But that story ... blech. I can see what he's trying to do, blurring the lines between victim and victimizer. But Robert's method of revenge is so utterly ludicrous and convoluted that you can hear the sound of gender studies undergrads typing out term papers. I suppose the film may have some level of humor that I'm missing out on, but the actors play everything ... err ... straight.

So, I am left to accept or reject the characters' emotional stakes. And I'm sorry, I just couldn't get on board. I'm told what drives Robert through dialogue, but I don't see it in the performance of Antonio Banderas. Elena Anaya is a stunner, but given all her character has been through, I don't believe her. Without that kind of investment, it's easy to dismiss Almodóvar's machinations as little more than posturing.

**1/2

[Spinal]

So the main criticism I'm reading of this film in relation to previous PA films is that it lacks an 'emotional pull' or somesuch irrelevancies...

:|

[Grouchy]

I loved it. Whoever says it doesn't invest emotionally on the characters is wrong. The characters might be harder to relate to than the ones from other Almodóvar movies, is all, or slightly more distant from normal situation. Also, Spinal, Banderas is a terrible actor and has always been. It didn't affect my enjoyment of this.

I love how Almodóvar always asks us to accept a great amount of situations and characters who are ten times more ludicrous than those of almost any other film, yet it almost always works for him. I also like his ending shots a lot, specially this one.

[ledfloyd]

this was pretty awesome, but i feel like i need to see it again. i really dug the score, and of course the colors almodovar being almodovar. but i was kind of taken aback by how gloriously fucked up this film is. jesus.

[B-side]

The Skin I Live In is better than most things.

Almodóvar, man. Lurid, deviant sexual melodrama. The eerie pre-packaged precision of the anatomical analysis scenes. The sensuous attention to the breath inflating her rib cage after she's saved the first time. No explicit "reasons," though one can easily assume. His décor and mise en scène are as exquisite as ever. Transgenderism as horror.

Can we change the title of the thread now?

[Rowland]

Is it just me or was the reveal obviously telegraphed? I mean:

Why would Vera be otherwise dreaming a flashback from Vincente's POV?I barely knew the premise of the film going in, and having heard it praised beforehand as something like Eyes Without a Face with a uniquely Almodóvar-ian twist, I kinda jokingly guessed to myself long before actually seeing the film what its twist might be, hardly suspecting that it would wind up that simple. While I obviously couldn't have known the specifics, it turned out upon watching the film that I was essentially right, a fact that became immediately apparent once the flashbacks began, which was kinda disappointing to be honest.

[B-side]

I suppose the film may have some level of humor that I'm missing out on, but the actors play everything ... err ... straight.

Did you miss the entire segment with the guy in the tiger suit?


So, I am left to accept or reject the characters' emotional stakes. And I'm sorry, I just couldn't get on board. I'm told what drives Robert through dialogue, but I don't see it in the performance of Antonio Banderas. Elena Anaya is a stunner, but given all her character has been through, I don't believe her. Without that kind of investment, it's easy to dismiss Almodóvar's machinations as little more than posturing.

**1/2

Banderas' character never once specifies why he chose the form of revenge that he did, but one can assume. He's not meant to be a hero, and nobody is meant to be one way or the other. Almodóvar's characterizations are deliberately as ambivalent as the sexuality on display.

[Bosco B Thug]

Also, my biggest diversion from Koresky (and towards Grouchy), I really loved where the film ended. It says:

It's only with mad scientists that this kind of tale can thrill and mystify us. When back to real human beings, the film asserts that they can totally handle it.

[Spinal]

Did you miss the entire segment with the guy in the tiger suit?

You're citing a rape scene as one I was supposed to find funny?

[Qrazy]

Not really a big fan of Almodovar, will probably give this a miss based upon the feedback here.

[B-side]

You're citing a rape scene as one I was supposed to find funny?

Yes, because the entire thing is played as lurid comedy. I mean, come on, the dialogue is pretty deadpan about it. She keeps referring to the guy as "The Tiger."

[ledfloyd]

i thought the tiger guy was funny, but certainly not the rape scene.

[B-side]

i thought the tiger guy was funny, but certainly not the rape scene.

Even the rape was played with some tongue in cheek. Him flopping around on top of her in that outfit was kind of amusing to me, at least. She expressed desire to have sex with him, but seemed ambivalent once it began. Not to mention all the talk as if he knew her.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Even the rape was played with some tongue in cheek. Him flopping around on top of her in that outfit was kind of amusing to me, at least. She expressed desire to have sex with him, but seemed ambivalent once it began. Not to mention all the talk as if he knew her.

The implication is that Banderas modelled Vera after his wife, who this man had an affair with. People mention it throughout, and it makes what he does all the more troubling. This oafish man commits an awful rape, but as the film unfolds he isn't even the biggest monster. It's a weird violent cycle, and each man seems to fall for the same "woman" (in one way or another).

I don't think the rape is funny either.

[B-side]

The implication is that Banderas modelled Vera after his wife, who this man had an affair with. People mention it throughout, and it makes what he does all the more troubling. This oafish man commits an awful rape, but as the film unfolds he isn't even the biggest monster. It's a weird violent cycle, and each man seems to fall for the same "woman" (in one way or another).

Oh yeah, definitely, I just think Almodóvar plays the rape with some tongue in cheek. I don't see why that's so hard to believe.

If you recall, the rape he avenges starts out as just an aggressive and high young guy making love to a woman who wants out after it's already "began," so he's obviously not trying for black and white characterizations.

[Grouchy]

The tiger scene is definitively rape but Vicente didn't really rape the girl. She freaked out like she seemed to freak out in other unrelated situations and he knocked her unconscious, then fled. The whole thing was a misunderstanding. If he had punched her in order to continue to have sex with her then of course it would be rape, but that wasn't the case.

That's the way I remember it at least.

[Bosco B Thug]

Oh yeah, definitely, I just think Almodóvar plays the rape with some tongue in cheek. I don't see why that's so hard to believe. There was definitely some off-color humor in the scene, especially in Vera's attempts to ward off/placate El Tigre's come-ons. And now it's even more off-color in retrospect knowing the entire story.

[B-side]

There was definitely some off-color humor in the scene, especially in Vera's attempts to ward off/placate El Tigre's come-ons. And now it's even more off-color in retrospect knowing the entire story.

Precisely. I'm not trying to say rape is funny, or that Almodovar staged the rape as a joke, but there was humor in the overall situation.

[Dukefrukem]

Yeh this was pretty great too. I was caught off guard a bit, even after just watching I Saw the Devil. I guess I wasn't excepting the rape scene or the scene in the garden during the flashback.

[lovejuice]

Superb. I love it.

I don't find the rape scene funny, but that's more because the tension of the whole movie doesn't allow much comedy in any scene. (Unlike, say, Tie me Up! Tie me Down! in which, rape scene is definitely played for a laugh.)

[Ezee E]

Well done Almodovar. This might be Banderas' best acting to date, although that's not saying much as I find him to be a mediocre actor. Reading through the thread, I found the reveal to be a slow one. Not a "shocking surprise" like a few expected it to be, but I certainly wasn't thinking the transformation had been made at the beginning of the flashback.

The rape scene is being discussed way more then it should I think. Not really sure what can be labeled as comical about it either.

The final scene of the movie is incredibly effective. Maybe the most heartwrenching scene of the year.

[ledfloyd]

it's strange to think in that last scene that a relationship between those two characters might be possible now, where as it wasn't earlier in the film, for obvious reasons.

[Yxklyx]

I agree with the criticisms cited here by Spinal et. al. Am I the only one here that thought that the mystery girl would actually be his daughter (who didn't actually die) re-envisioned as his wife?

[Grouchy]

The rape scene is being discussed way more then it should I think. Not really sure what can be labeled as comical about it either.
Uh, one of the two characters is disguised as a tiger.

[number8]

I can assure you, there is nothing comical about being raped by a tiger.

[Ezee E]

Uh, one of the two characters is disguised as a tiger.
Hilarious!

[Henry Gale]

Finally saw this and it's just about as gorgeous, unsettling and nonchalantly weird as I would have hoped, directed so strongly and tonally matter of fact that it never feels as if Almodovar is trying to be sensational, but simply allowing its increasingly strange story to be told in such a way that mirrors and back traces exactly to what extent Banderas' character has completely lost touch with the profoundly fucked up nature of the situation, something that only slowly unfolds for us as the audience. The structure really is a great character in the whole thing: Initially intriguingly beautiful, then slowly more and more quietly, even accidentally, evil. Arguably the reverse of Vera's journey and what Robert's arc becomes.

Still, not sure how fulfilled I was by the last couple of scenes. Otherwise, I loved it.

***1/2

EDIT: Also, pretty surprising to not see this make the MC 2011 Top 20, especially since it managed to win Best Adapted Screenplay.

[Lucky]

A more disturbing, psychologically fucked film cut from the same cloth as Vertigo. Loved this. Best Almodovar I've seen.

Also, hearing this score makes me even more disappointed in Drive's win on this forum.

[Ezee E]

A more disturbing, psychologically fucked film cut from the same cloth as Vertigo. Loved this. Best Almodovar I've seen.

Also, hearing this score makes me even more disappointed in Drive's win on this forum.
I still attest that to this movie simply not being seen by enough MCers. Certainly enough to rave it to Original Screenplay, but it only had 10 viewers I believe, if that.

[Lucky]

One more thing I forgot to comment on.

How many times during the course of a movie does a character who is originally villified end up garnering a bit of sympathy from you because they've been put through the wringer? Not because of redemption, which is easier, but through sheer amount of torture. Conversely, the character you originally believe is justified in their actions turns out to be disturbingly evil. Rare feat to pull off, well done.