Dir. Pedro Almodóvar, Spain, 2011, 120 mins, in Spanish with subtitles
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya,
Review by Carol Allen
The story is about a wealthy and respected plastic surgeon, Robert Legard (Banderas), who specialises in rebuilding the skin of burns victims. He has a secret though – a beautiful young woman Vera (Anaya) who is an apparently willing prisoner in his home and on whose flawless skin he is constantly working in his efforts to develop a type of synthetic skin which is impervious to any damage. Vera, as we later learn, is now also a prisoner within a skin, which is no longer the one with which she was born.
At first sight this tale appears to be an elegantly stylish reworking of the Frankenstein legend, combined with a surgical version of Professor Higgins and Eliza Dolittle. But being Almodovar this is an even darker story, exploring sometimes previously visited themes of morality, identity, sexuality and revenge.
Visually however it is far from dark. It is a beautiful looking film, elegant as I say, and making lavish use of Almodovar’s signature colour red – and not just in the blood of surgery.
To say too much about the story would be to give too much away, as the mystery of who Vera is and why Robert is obsessively experimenting on her is revealed in long, complicated and satisfying flashbacks, involving Banderas’ beloved late wife, herself a burns victim from an accident, and the effect of this on his daughter.
Banderas as the complex central character engages our sympathy to the extent of not losing it even when the nature and cruelty of his relationship with Vera is revealed. Anaya is not only beautiful but convinces us of the reality of the bizarre and dark fantasy, which turns out to be the truth of her situation and there are good supporting performances from Marisa Paredes as Robert’s loyal housekeeper, whose own past secrets are an important element in the story; Jan Cornet, as the young man whose fate is inextricably linked to that of Vera and Blanca Suárez as Robert’s deeply disturbed daughter.
It is a bizarre tale, stylish and beautifully told, which never fails to hold the attention.
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