Pedro Almodóvar's poignant melodramatic masterpiece on unconditional love, survival, and redemption, overflowing with riveting performances and unforgettable characters. 25th anniversary screening.
Manuela (Cecilia Roth) is the perfect mother. A hard-working nurse, she's built a comfortable life for herself and her teenage son, an aspiring writer. But when tragedy strikes and her beloved only child is killed in a car accident, her world crumbles. The heartbroken woman learns her son's final wish was to know his father—the man she abandoned when she was pregnant 18 years earlier. Returning to Barcelona in search of him, Manuela overcomes her grief and becomes caregiver to a colorful family: a pregnant nun (Penélope Cruz), a transgender prostitute (Antonia San Juan), and two troubled actresses (Marisa Paredes and Candela Peña). [101 min; comedy, drama, romance; Spanish and Catalan with English subtitles]
"An absolute stunner. A funny, touching and vital film marks a career peak for Almodóvar!" — Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
"Almodóvar's masterwork is a spectacular synthesis of everything that has always interested him—proud women, lovely boys, beautiful drag queens, grand movie stars, gorgeous frocks, wild wallpaper." — Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
"A surprisingly satisfying combination of bawdy sexual humor, genuine emotion, and a plot with mechanics so excessive that Almodóvar himself calls it 'a screwball drama.'" — Los Angeles Times
Any film screened at IU Cinema may contain content that viewers find sensitive or upsetting. Visit our Audience Advisories page to learn more.
