Movie Review

Spanish film Parallel Mothers takes alternate path toward success

Milena Smit and Penélope Cruz in Parallel Mothers.

Photo by Iglesias Más; courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

The 72-year-old Pedro Almodóvar has been a force in Spanish cinema for 40 years, inspiring filmmakers in Spain and around the world with his knack for telling stories full of color and complexity. The writer/director tends to work with many of the same actors, including internationally famous ones like Antonio Banderas and Penélope Cruz, the latter of which he has directed no fewer than seven times.

The filmmaker and actor have teamed up once again in Parallel Mothers. Cruz plays Janis, a photographer on the brink of 40 who gets pregnant unexpectedly. While in the hospital to give birth, she meets Ana (Milena Smit), whose pregnancy comes on the opposite side of age spectrum. The two bond quickly, promising to stay in touch to support each other as first-time mothers.

Both women have disassociated themselves from their babies' fathers, although Janis still maintains a friendly relationship with Arturo (Israel Elejalde), an archeologist who was helping her with a family project. Ana would like to lean on her mom, Teresa (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón), but Teresa has long held dreams of being an actor that she continues to pursue even after the baby is born.

For most of the film’s running time, the story is both relatively straightforward and oddly formulated. Janis and Ana’s friendship morphs and grows, but in ways that are often culturally specific to Spain. Almodóvar introduces some story twists with which American audiences are familiar, but he deals with them in a manner that is decidedly different for anyone who may be used to the rhythm of U.S. films.

As the film is called Parallel Mothers, one would think that it’s about the impact of motherhood on these two women. And while that is definitely the main focus of the film, it begins and ends with a seemingly-unrelated request Janis made to Arturo for help in excavating a mass grave to recover the remains of her great-grandfather. With allusions to the reign of former Spanish dictator Francisco Franco, the film seems to be commenting on something of which only Spanish citizens may have great knowledge.

As that shows, Almodóvar is unafraid to take narrative risks. He includes a few time jumps that aren’t too difficult to follow, but do take a few moments for the viewer to reorient his or her thinking. And, at least in the early going, the storytelling feels like a game of tag, going from one character to the next quickly and with little context. Where an American film might spell out things explicitly, this one keeps its emotions understated, never delving into histrionics.

Cruz, who just appeared in The 355, is obviously very much at home in an Almodóvar film. She exudes both vulnerability and strength, and the way she handles the story’s trickier moments is a testament to her Oscar-winning skills. Smit’s role requires a different approach, but she’s just as impressive. All of the supporting actors play a big part in making the film succeed, especially Sánchez-Gijón and Rossy de Palma.

Parallel Mothers is an engaging watch, with Almodóvar using his normal style to great effect and showcasing the actors highly effectively. Even if it doesn’t stick the landing, there’s more than enough on the screen to recommend.

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Parallel Mothers is now playing at Angelika Film Center Dallas; it will open at Angelika Film Center Plano on January 21.

Movie Review

Daniel Craig searches for elusive new bond in audacious film Queer

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer

Photo courtesy of A24

Drew Starkey and Daniel Craig in Queer.

As recently as the late 2010s, if a movie was made about an LGBTQ+ character, it was more than likely about their coming out experience. Romance, if it existed, was typically chaste, and actual sex was almost completely out of the question. Things have changed dramatically in the 2020s, to the point that a major movie star has no issue starring in a film called Queer.

Based on the 1985 novella by William S. Burroughs, the film features William Lee (Daniel Craig), whom everyone calls just Lee, a writer living in 1950s-era Mexico City who spends most of his time haunting local bars with friends like fellow writer Joe Guidry (Jason Schwartzman) and hitting on younger men. His early interactions in the film seem to indicate that Lee has a bad reputation within the local gay community, as multiple people avoid him or give him odd looks.

Lee senses an opportunity when he encounters a newcomer, Eugene Allerton (Drew Starkey). Despite some awkward interactions, the two of them start spending time together, although Lee has much more invested in the relationship than Eugene does. Their hit-and-miss bond continues until Lee, who’s starting to get into drugs in addition to the booze, convinces Eugene to accompany him on a trip to South America.

Directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes (making their second straight film together after Challengers), early on the film seems to be mostly about the divide between an older person who’s grown comfortable in his ways and a younger person who’s living a relatively carefree life. The introduction of drugs into the plot changes things, though, with Lee searching out more ways to open his eyes to what the world has to offer.

Guadagnino and his team use some interesting visual storytelling techniques to introduce ideas that may not be present in the actual script. The most successful, demonstrated in multiple scenes, is the superimposition of movements by Lee over what’s actually taking place in the scene. The subtle overlay gives the audience insight into Lee’s true feelings, showing what he can’t or won’t say out loud.

Music also plays a big part in how the plot is perceived, with the use of anachronistic songs from Nirvana and Prince serving to heighten certain moments. The score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is not as in-your-face as the one they did for Challengers, but it complements the film well, especially when the plot starts to get trippy in its final half hour.

Craig, who appears sweaty and disheveled for much of the film, is about as far from the suaveness of James Bond as you can get in this role. He takes multiple risks with his performance and almost all of them pay off. Starkey’s character is subdued by comparison, but still comes off well. Schwartzman and Lesley Manville are given showy roles, with both using altered appearances that make them nearly unrecognizable to deliver memorable performances.

Queer is not as accessible as Challengers was storytelling-wise, but the fact that it tells a story about gay men living their lives as they see fit with no interference or questions shows how far the film world has come in a short period of time. It also continues Guadagnino’s streak of making audacious films in a way that few other filmmakers are willing or able to approach.

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Queer is now playing in theaters.

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