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ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER Send This Review to a Friend
The 1999 New York Film Festival's opening night selection "All About My Mother," directed by Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar and now going into general release, is akin to a soap opera, but Almodovar directs schmaltz in a grand style and with such passion that he elevates the story he scripted to dynamic heights. He also has cast three gifted stars whose acting is so powerful, moving or entertaining, depending on what the director chooses to emphasize, that they are a sparkling show unto themselves.
The film is also stunningly photographed. In the opening scene cinematographer Affonso Beato surprisingly imparts unusual beauty to life-support tubes and equipment in a hospital, hardly objects one would normally see in an aesthetic light. But the main strength lies in the performances.
Cecilia Roth richly explores the character of Manuela, whose son with whom she is close meets with a sudden fatal accident. As one whose job it is to help process the donation of organs, she now is faced with that grim decision regarding her son. Without going into plot detail, the aftermath brings her into contact with Huma, a stage actress playing Blanche du Bois in "A Streetcar Named Desire." Marisa Paredes is in top form as the demanding yet eventually compassionate performer, who has a lesbian relationship with the drug-addicted actress Nina (Candela Pena), who is playing Stella.
When Manuela goes to Barcelona in hope of finding the son's father with whom she has lost contact, she meets Agrado, a transvestite hooker, played by Antonia San Juan, who would steal the film completely if Roth and Paredes were not equally good. San Juan has the most showy role, and makes the most of it, whether tossing off sure-fire laugh lines or mining underlying sadness from the part. Manuela and Agrado become close friends, and Manuela also strikes up a friendship with Sister Rosa (Penelope Cruz), who tries to help unfortunates and finds herself in her own desperate situation.
Agrado's dialogue is colorfully raunchy, which gives the film an amusing earthiness. As events unfold, it is clear that Almodovar is determined to instill respect for his characters whatever their sexual orientation and however they earn a living. He wants his characters to be themselves and to aid one another with understanding and compassion despite their differences. "All About My Mother" is a loving film chock full of exuberance and humanity. A Sony Pictures Classics release.
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