Parallel Mothers feels like classic Pedro Almodóvar. The Spanish director’s 22nd feature, the film carries a plot that it feels like he could make work in his sleep. Of course, with an end result this emotionally precise, it’s abundantly clear that, after all this time, the filmmaker is still working at the height of his powers.
A melodrama with a political twist, Parallel Mothers follows two women of different generations in Madrid that form a strong bond while in the hospital, preparing to give birth. Janis (Penélope Cruz) is a veteran fashion photographer who has just hit 40, while Ana (impressive newcomer Milena Smit) is still living with her parents deciding what she wants to do with her life. As it’s clear neither father will be, at the very least, an occasional presence in the young child’s life, the pair remain in loose contact over the years. That is, until their lives intersect in a more significant and permanent manner.
True to Almodóvar’s signature talents, Parallel Mothers is a comedic melodrama in its most pure form. The twists that Janis and Ana interpersonal journeys take are soapy and delicious, all while the director’s pacing and Cruz’s quite possibly career-best performance ensure the film never slips into territory that removes our emotional investment. At just over two hours, this turbulent human drama manages not to outstay its welcome, keeping us glued to the decisions these women make in the midst of larger conversations about one’s connection, and responsibility for, the history around them.
Almodóvar’s script smartly laces a more profound conversation about the controversial excavation of mass graves from the Spanish Civil War into the background of the women’s relationship. Eventually it builds to a heated conversation between Janis and Ana in which the pain of the history Spain has, until recently, largely swept under the rug boils over. But this issue doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb amid the melodrama at the plot’s center. It ties to the themes of where one comes from and the importance of love over all else that Janis and Ana are forced to reconcile with throughout the film.
Cruz is a wonder to behold here, delivering a fully realized women in Janis through a warm spirit and a restrained emotional vulnerability that quickens her to fear and anger. Finding strength through trust is her character’s main arc, and Cruz takes us through the journey without ever overplaying it, clueing us in to the film’s endgame. It helps that her chemistry with Smit, undoubtedly a talent to keep an eye on, is one of the highlights of Parallel Mothers. As they continue to move closer to joining each other’s’ family, Almodóvar resumes his signature adoration for seeing cross-generational women come together.
And so we’re left with another stunner added to an already stunning filmography. Parallel Mothers may not be Almodóvar’s best film, but this late into the director’s career, it’s a work that makes what he does look easy while still managing to challenge us. As funny and as twisty as the film can be, there are no easy answers for Janis and Ana. That uniquely human element of the unknown as it ties to our emotions and desires is precisely what makes Almodóvar the modern master of the melodrama.
Pedro Almodóvar is definitely overdue for a first or second oscar. He’s one of the great foreign filmmakers of all time. It’s too bad that his film was shut out of the international feature category. But we still love him.
I would give to the film – at this point – Picture, Director, Actress and Original Screenplay, with nomination for Score and Film Editing and Supporting Actress (Milena Smit)
***** / A+
Almodóvar’s best (and richest, and most complex) screenplay. Cruz’s best performance. Amazing ensemble and score. Direction is completely in service of the story and Almodóvar forces himself to disappear his signature coda at many moments, to make the message and the performances grow and expand and build in a slowburn a devastating, fascinating second half of the film, using the parallels (pun intended) and allegories to perfection to drive the audience to the final shot that is simply, unbeatable, and that would have been less powerful in the hands of almost any other director. So much style and wisdom. Jaw dropped.
And yes, the first half of the movie may feel slow and unengaging… but everything, absolutely everything, pays off. A movie to rewatch and analyze further. I am still thinking about the symbolism of the au pair character…
SHOULD WIN at least
Lead Actress
Original Screenplay
Should win
Director
Should be nominated at least
Picture
Score
Would be nice
Cinematography
Film Editing
Supporting Actress (Milena Smit)
SAG Ensemble
If it is slow to start with is there the danger that people will switch off?
no, at all, it’s slow but always intriguing, because you think it may go in some way, but it keeps changing ideas…
… the thing is, if you “get” the subtext right away – I was ready because of early reviews – you’ll find a completely different experience that if you are unaware of what’s about (which is confirmed in the last 20 minutes or so)
Bennett,Chastain,Colman,Cruz,Stewart.
That be great if Cruz were to somehow find herself in the Best Actress race, assuming this is a good film. An original character, rather than some deep fake personality from a by-the-numbers biopic, is much more interesting than what is currently being heralded as “frontrunner”.
just worth of noting: the mass graves were not only during the Spanish Civil War (most of them were, though), but the repression after the war, left over 100,000 people killed and another 400,000 forced to work as slaves (many of them, even dying as such, working to construct the “Valle de los Caídos” monument, which is an insult to the victims that is still open and a place for commemoration of the fascist regime… many industries in Spain used also the slave work force of “political prisoners” and became powers and the families that benefited of this genocide and mass theft, are the most significant part of the elites that actually rule Spain to this day).
There’s been no reparation to the victims – and none in sight – and the “conservatives” always protest whenever reparation is sought, with the excuse of that being “opening closed wounds”. No. The wound never closed because the “democratic” government didn’t ever allow them to close… to this point, you see the security forces befriending extreme right demonstrators, as recently happened in the gay neighborhood of Chueca, where an authorized extreme right and homophobic demonstration, was allowed to chant homophobic rants and the police did not do anything, not even identifying the people committing a hate crime directly in front of them.
The wound is more open than ever. That is why Parallel Mothers is so important, and probably why the Spanish Academy chose some other film, to submit, to avoid as much international controversy about Spain’s actual democracy – with our King Juan Carlos I exiled running away from justice for money laundry – that would break the mirage of democracy and freedom.
Thanks for sharing this.
this is why I feel PM can be a force to be reckoned, this Awards race… it may be really eye-opening for international audiences, about the true face of Spain. Which is beyond nasty.
I always found shocking that here I was labelled as “patriotic”… when I moved to the Netherlands, back in 2003, I was eager to stay and become dutch citizen. Afterwards, I married an Austrian man (Bavarian but with Austrian passport) and I always regret not having been able to justify the marriage to the Austrian government so maybe now I could be an Austrian citizen… rather than a Spanish one. Spain is way far beyond redemption. We only had a true democracy (or almost) and was between 1931 and 1939 and was crushed with international help (Germany, Italy) and absolute indifference from the USA, France or UK… all of them, fearing we would become a soviet satellite. After Franco won, the “allies” pretended to not know there was still a fascist regime and Hitler’s ally – we send troops to help him against the USSR – and quickly forced us inside the UN and to become a puppet of DC, with military bases to control North Africa, Southern Europe and the Mediterranean Sea. Unsurprising that the USA would actually promote and help fascism worldwide (specially Latin America)…
Has COVID pushed Spain into a depression? Is unemployment high?
unemployment stats are tricked as the situation of hundreds thousands – for a year, myself included – was kind of “no man’s land” with the ERTE (which will expand till the end of February next year) so, technically we aren’t really unemployed (well, not me, I am already back to work since June) but neither employed. Stats had been untrustworthy for decades, anyways… with each new government, there were new ways to just not count people into the unemployment: those who just gave up checking are not counted, regardless of the actual fact, that they haven’t a job. In some areas in Andalusia, is over 40% and in my area, probably the real unemployment is no lower than 25%… nobody seems to think the obvious sollution: earlier retirement and to work less hours a week, to spread the work hours and create jobs by taking care (medical, amusement) of the elderly (including the hundred thousands foreigners retired in Spain, which would be an industry itself), but the emphasis is still to show us Spaniards the exit door to Europe and other countries – and whenever we do that, to try to get a new life, all our health and part of our civil rights are revoked, including making for us extremely difficult to vote.
The Spanish system is rigged beyond belief, to make the poor, poorer, and desperate. The vaccine given is football and alcohol – I think we are the countries with highest rate of bars per habitants. Luckily I don’t drink alcohol, and like football (soccer for US citizens) moderately, so that doesn’t numb / dumb my mind and perspective. It’s been years that I only vote to Communist parties… everything else, helps to perpetuate this system
So many people in their 20s either live on welfare or leave? In Spain 18 hours a week is part time and 35 hours is full time? Barcelona FC was a great team and people must have been upset when Messi left. Spain had its Golden Generation in football when it won the Euro twice with one World Cup in between. Xavi, Iniesta.
40 hours a week is full time and 26 a week is part time.
FC Barcelona has been shooting its own feet for decades, it is a team built through deep corruption with tight laces with the nationalist conservatives in Catalonia, which helped during so many years to increase the budget and span of the Sports club (as it is not just football, but handball, basketball, etc) and used them politically in many ways, creating a sinergy between the FC Barcelona institution and the CiU party (now Junts)… when there was a change of government in favor of the left, in Catalonia, and also the old presidency gang of the FC Barcelona (Núñez and then Gaspart) lost the elections in favor of Laporta and the next ones… the liasion became critical, and to add salt to the injury, Messi happened and destroyed the equilibrium inside the institution with his obscene salary and hiring (demanding and requesting teammates and coaches being fired or transferred) did expand the debt to over 1 billion euros. Yes, you read right, that’s how badly FC Barcelona is endebted… if nothing changes drastically, probably in 2 to 5 years, the institution would be disappeared.
Should a movie be made on this? This is better than most fiction.
well, if you want to get sued… in Spain, it is taboo
Criticising FC Barcelona is taboo?
it automatically labels you as fascist, for starters, a spanish nationalist. Oddly enough, traditionally, FC Barcelona is the team of the catalonian bourgheise (conservative/extreme right but in Catalonian key), and somehow, marketing has made FC Barcelona look like a “progresist” politically team. Which isn’t (just look at their budget, players, etc.)
What about Real Madrid? To be fair England has also has a problem of clubs paying huge salaries.
Real Madrid, has also a huge debt, but it’s not run by politicians/politicians-wannabees… but by Florentino Pérez, one of the wealthiest business men in Spain and with tight laces with the spanish elites… and he uses Real Madrid more as a business than a club or a device to achieve political power or tool for political friends.
Therefore, the debt and decissions in Real Madrid are guided by cold stats and calculations, and in a similar situation, while Messi forced FC Barcelona to get rid of some big names, so they could increase Messi’s salary, Real Madrid came to a point of stop and sold Cristiano Ronaldo, to get rid of his salary and earn some money in return as well… the result? Benzema has become a huge star and the team is more balanced, while FC Barcelona is frankly struggling a bit. While neither of them is dominating the Spanish Primera División, it’s clear that the disappointing status of Real Madrid comes from readjustment because of the loss of income due to Covid, while FC Barcelona’s problems come because they simply are close to bankruptancy and are quite desperate about how to solve the situation, without help from the Catalonian government. Spoiler: they probably won’t be able to survive, unless some miracle happen… they will have to be getting rid of more and more players, flying to Premier League, Serie A, League 1 and Bundesliga, specially, and depend more and more of the Masia players – the rookies. Predictably, in a span of 5 to 10 years, the team can lose the category and even disappear. But politicians will probably do something to save it.
Thanks for this information about Real and Barcelona. Interesting read. Which club you support in Primera?
I was a FC Barcelona supporter – spent many summers in Barcelona – despite all my family (but one uncle) being supporter of Real Madrid. But in my 20s while spending summers in Barcelona, I began being conscious of the scheme that was feeding (indirectly) FC Barcelona with public money, giving it an unfair advantage, and FC Barcelona always sidelining with the catalonian nationalist conservatives, specially in times of elections. So I switched to Real Madrid, at my family’s shock.
But to be honest, I am not anti-FC Barcelona at all. And I am not just a Real Madrid supporter. I like football, so I like good teams and good matches. It’s just a sport. Among the teams that have my sympathies, Real Madrid, Málaga CF, Athletic Bilbao, Bayern Munich (by marriage), Manchester Utd or Ajax from Amsterdam (I lived there, as well, at a small village called Monnickendam, where I would love to retire).
FC Barcelona’s CEO has recently said that if it was a listed company it would have filed for bankruptcy. Real Madrid’s situation is fine if a rich man is using his money. Some people in the past have complained about Messi’s selfishness.
“But politicians will probably do something to save it.” Like giving a tax break or using taxpayer money?
“While neither of them is dominating the Spanish Primera División.” That is good news. Soccer cannot be just about two strong teams. Athletico has come up.
Atlético is a bankrupt team that was saved by the state taking control of its finances…
Can’t wait for this. Have re-watched a dozen of my favourite Cruz and/or Almodovar films over the past few weeks in anticipation. Finished with Volver last night and am so ready for this!