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Pain and Glory


'Pain and Glory' (2019)

Dir.: Pedro Almodovar


Almodovar's latest is a sumptuous semi autobiographical traipse through time and memory that explores the euphoria and depression of life choices and fate. The colour scheme alone is absolutely spellbinding with reds, blues and green jumping out at the viewer. There are flashbacks, non-linear parts and the structure is quite unorthadox, but Almodovar's direction is so flawless that instead of being jarring, it only adds to the experience. There are the usual themes of mother son relationships and sexuality but also subtexts that include making peace with your mistakes, reliving memories, staying true to your creative side and life's endless search for true happiness.

There are moments that evoke the finest European movies of last century and also a fresh feel to it - with Antonio Banderas giving what many critics have described as a career best performance. And the ending - the ending was just perfect. I left feeling almost euphoric at what I'd just seen.

An entire review at this time is almost pointless as this movie will probably take days to sink in. But at the moment it's a 9 out of 10. Amongst Almodovar's finest work.

It's a truly gorgeous film.