I was certain that this is going to be a quality film, but not sure how I am going to react to it. From one side we have Pedro Almodóvar, that is directing. We all know his qualities, but fear the complexities, that his films are hiding inside and not always are easy to digest.
From the actors' side we've got Tilda Swinton, Julianne Moore and John Turturro. The plot is heavyweight and as Almodóvar likes always to discuss - death is one big part in the plot of his new movie. Death is the main theme, but life and the way to wrap death from different directions, when you already know it is arriving, is one big aspect in Almodóvar's current movie.
This movie not only wraps the main death and life theme, but touches all other elements that are affected by it. Almodóvar is talking about how completing with the concept of dying is affecting the surrounding, and in this movie in particular about one close friend and estranged family member.
The thing that bothered me the most in this movie, that it was pretty dull, though it had a lot of fine elements. The director and actors did their job with describing the final days in one's dying woman's life. The conversations where deep, the conclusions are wide, but somewhere this movie felt like watching paint peel or flower grow.
Slow burner almost doesn't describe well what we've watched in this one. It wasn't that long, but if felt endless. You can go to sleep in the middle, wake up and still miss several conversations that didn't impact the course of the movie. For this movie, it is better to lower the expectations from one - Almodóvar and try to get into it, when you are totally ready.
11 out of 20 found this helpful