Julieta

Dir: Pedro Almodóvar

2016

****

If you look closely, you can spot a copy of Alice Monro's 2004 novel Runaway in Pedro Almodóvar's 2011 film The Skin I Live In. Almodóvar is clearly a fan and has been trying to adapt the book of short stories since he bought the rights back in 2009. The novel includes eight short stories in total, Almodóvar however has only adapted and merged three of them that included the same character; Julieta. Almodóvar's initial intention was to film in Canada where stories are set and it would have been his first English language feature. Meryl Streep was actually the director’s first choice and she would play the character at 20, 40 and 60 years old. This is an idea that sounds a million miles away from the great director that I love and I'm really glad he came to his senses, although integrity has never been his weak point, so I'm also not surprised. Julieta aged 20 to 40 is played by the brilliant Adriana Ugarte, while the older version of Julieta is played by Emma Suarez. Both actors are sensational in their performances and clearly understand the brief and the character.  The rest of the cast is made up of relatively new actors who all do a great job and long-time collaborator Rossy de Palma. I'm a big fan of de Palma and it was somewhat of a thrill to see her in an Almodóvar film again, in a very different role this time, but she pretty much steals every scene she's in as you'd expect. No director, and I mean no director, can balance mystery and melodrama quite like Almodóvar. The film deals with regret, the fear that comes with it and the loneliness and solitude that can come after abandonment. It isn't a sad film though, there is sadness within it but it isn't just 90 minutes of watching someone cry, it's how people deal/don't deal with things in a very realistic manner. It's also a Hitchcockian mystery. Julieta is almost like what would happen if Hitchcock, Louis Malle, Eric Rohmer and Joan Didion all entered Seth Brundle's teleportation pod at the same time together, or at least that version of The Fly film, directed by Almodóvar. Almodóvar's films have evolved quite a lot over the years but his unique signature style is always very clear, he's almost a genre in his own right. The film is as rich and as colourful as you'd expect from the director, it's amazing how he makes the bleakest of scenes so vivid and appealing. The structure of the film, flitting back and forth through flashbacks is handled terrifically well and certain scenes, particularly on the train in the first chapter, are pieces of pure gold cinema. Julieta represents Almodóvar's twentieth film and it's just as brilliant as his first. I struggle to think of another director who has made as many films over the years that hasn't lost their core quality or their signature style and that haven't sold themselves out, there aren't many and Almodóvar remains one of the best.