Pedro Almodóvar is singular in his brilliance. Not only have the Spanish director’s films seeped into the American-dominated, mainstream of cinema, they have done so in irreverent, glossy style. It’s always immensely impressive when a foreign director cracks that hard, obstinate shell.
It certainly makes you pay attention; and his newest film, Parallel Mothers, is no different.
Penélope Cruz and Milena Smit offer two scintillating performances as the eponymous counterpart mums. Both are one part vulnerable, two parts strong as single women who meet in a hospital room as they are both about to give birth. One is middle aged and doesn't regret it, while the other is adolescent and scared.
The two women form a strong bond with one another as they both confront motherhood. The few words they shared in those hours will create a link between them, which by chance develops and complicates, and changes their lives in a decisive way.
Like any Almodóvar film, though, it’s hardly that simple. In the hands of a lesser director and writer it would be, but complex narratives are his passion, his joie de vivre. He deftly weaves in his country’s history, enlightening audiences with his own musings on the wake of General Francisco Franco’s death.
How do two mothers in a modern-day Spanish hospital have anything to do with General Franco, you might ask? Well, you’ll have to watch and see.
It’s that ability to weld together the intricate details – and serendipity - of the cradle and the grave that make Almodóvar a landmark director and storyteller of our time. All his expertise and experience shine in the film’s denouement, an emotional bundle of joy which is nothing less than magnificent.
Parallel Mothers (M) is screening at the Proserpine Entertainment Centre (PEC) on Sunday, September 25 at 1.30pm. Tickets are available online at the PEC website.
WHAT: Parallel Mothers (M)
WHERE: Proserpine Entertainment Centre (PEC)
WHEN: Sunday, September 25 at 1.30pm
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