Spanish Director Pedro Almodóvar trades cynicism for hope in his ode to birth, loss, rebirth and all things maternal, "All About My Mother".
Mr. Almodóvar has put together a strong feminine - if not completely female - cast including Cecilia Roth in the emotionally trying lead role of Manuela. The film follows Manuela through a gut-wrenching tragedy. As she tries to rebuild her life - always with the shadow of this misfortune over her - the film shows her frailty and her incredible strength.
After setting up Manuela as a loving mother, the film brilliantly forces the audience to confront the fact that mothers are people too - with lives that existed, and were sometimes abandoned, before they became mothers. Manuela's journey of healing shows her as comfortable with transvestites (as in the Sandra Bernhard-esque Antonia San Juan) as with nuns (the beautiful Penelope Cruz from Mr. Almodóvar's "Live Flesh").
Aside from Manuela's son, Esteban (Eloy Azorin), most of the men in the film are either clueless or no help at all. The film does not look down on men, but it shows that women need to rely on each other, and most importantly on themselves, to survive. As each of the characters in the film meet, there seems to be some unspoken bond between them, and in most cases a subtle maternal instinct kicks in which develops with a beautiful fluidity.
Mr. Almodóvar's trademark pastels are well suited to this story as is his other directorial handiwork. There have been complaints recently that Mr. Almodóvar has never made the transition to directing Hollywood films. But if this is the caliber of film that he is creating in Spain, this complaint is unfounded. "All About My Mother" is a wonderful Mother's Day card, in any language.
