Pedro Almodovar and Bong Joon Ho are very similar storytellers. They usually find ways to weave in personal stories specific to their cultures into some genre movie, weaving in and out of both tales. Sometimes the pieces don’t fit perfectly together, and you get interesting but confusing films (The Host for Ho, or Volver for Almodovar). But occasionally, a Parasite will happen, combining a potent mixture of directing talent and unique, amazing storytelling into one potent feature film. Well, Pedro Almodovar might just have made his Parasite with Parallel Mothers, showcasing the director firing on all cylinders like the legend he already is.
Janis (Penelope Cruz, Almodovar’s muse), a photographer, meets a Spanish anthropologist, Arturo (Israel Elejalde) during his photoshoot for a magazing. Janis is instantly attracted to Arturo, leading to a fling, which leaves her pregnant. During her labor, she’s placed in a room with Ana (Milena Smit), a teenager also saddled with a surprise pregnancy. The two become friends during their stay, and exchange phone numbers so they can remain friends as they raise their kids together.
The two stories Almodovar weaves together would fall apart in most director’s hands. The first tale is a Spanish telenovela, with plot twists, emotional entanglements, and a bit of loony. The 2nd is a philosophical exploration of Spanish history, and how the past informs the present, and the present informs the future. So how do you make an artistic soap opera. The key is tone juggling. Initially, Almodovar throws you off a bit. The story starts with an anthropological dig through some Spanish history, but the musical cues reflect the novela. So you’re brain is going “What the hell is so ominous about digging?” This is then followed by a comedic look at unplanned pregnancy. But in talented director’s hand you should trust. What Pedro Almodovar is doing is keeping us off balance like his two stories, because something isn’t right yet, and needs time to develop. So over the next two hours develop he does. What’s broken can be mended, and on all levels: character, plot, theme, story, Almodovar takes these broken pieces and starts fusing them together, disparate piece by disparate piece. Like an orchestra conductor, the brilliant director brings in a little character development here, a plot twist there, a dose of a song styling everywhere, and creates Parallel Mothers, his tapestry of magnificence.
Fortunately, Almodovar’s got acting partners capable of executing his vision. Penelope Cruz continues to prove why Almodovar picks her to star in almost everything he does. She’s as brilliant as ever, balancing the tonal juggling act of the movie with Janis’s complicated character arc with class, presence, and talent. Though there’s parallel mothers here, Parallel Mothers is Cruz’s sun, around which everything revolves. Ably supporting Cruz is younger mother Milena Smit. Unknown in the US, Smit is wonderful here, crafting almost a new Ana with each new haircut as time passes in the movie, building upon previous scenes of the character and carrying much of the emotional weight of the movie. Aitana Sánchez-Gijón and Rossy de Palma are excellent in accompaniment as well.
The world has gone through a bunch of hard times these past 3 years. It certainly feels like large parts of it have been broken. But Pedro Almodovar’s Parallel Mothers is a complicated but eventually loving reminder that things can be whole again. It just takes time. And maybe an anthropological dig near a potential grave site. Who knows?