Julieta (2016) (Spanish Language)

Review

99min

Genre:      Drama

Director:   Pedro Almodóvar

Cast:        Emma Suárez, Adriana Ugarte, Daniel Grao…and more

Writers:    Pedro Almodóvar and Alice Munro

-Synopsis-

A solemn middle-aged Spanish woman is confronted with her past and forced to re-live the traumatic events which caused a strained and estranged relationship with her daughter, in a return to female-centric relationship drama from acclaimed writer/director Pedro Almodóvar.

‘Julieta’ is a drama split between the two eras of its titular character; older Julieta, played by Emma Suárez, whose tenderly re-constructed life is thrown back into turmoil, and she into depression, when a chance encounter dredges up a painful past and her non-existent relationship with her absent adult daughter.

As she attempts to re-connect with a past she struggled to leave behind, we are transported to her earlier life and a young Julieta, played by Adriana Ugarte;  a twenty-something independent academic who turns a chance encounter into a new path, but who seems destined to live a life that’s tinged with tragedy and filled by regret.

The film is a essentially an Almodóvar Spanish adaptation of Alice Munro’s work, and in particular a combination and reworking of short stories from her 2004 book “Runaway”; it’s a sombre drama about the interconnected lives of several women and the thread of grief that links all of them, and in particular colours the life of the titular character.

There’s also a distinct mystery element about the narrative, with the audience getting fleeting glimpses of a story which then gets fleshed out as Julieta recounts the events of her past, and the mystery and drama are elevated by the true star of the film, the music.

Alberto Iglesias pays tribute to classic Hollywood by crafting a brilliantly reverential score; at times a wonderful Jazz piece that wouldn’t be out of place in a classic noir mystery, and then slips into darker dramatic tones that Hitchcock might’ve nicked for one of his thrillers, an unlikely combination which somehow fits into the context and gives the film more weight.

Pedro Almodóvar doesn’t exactly break new cinematic ground with ‘Julieta’; this is a slow-burn, more emotional than cerebral family drama which might not completely captivate Almodóvar neophytes, while existing fans might find the film quite subdued by his standards, lacking in levity and not reaching of the heights set by his more celebrated work.

But this may the product of a more mainstream and mature filmmaker who’s no longer the industry outsider; but thankfully ‘Julieta’ is a non-too-melodramatic melodrama with a captivating lead character, expertly brought to life in both incarnations by both lead actresses. A poignant family drama about love and loss, motherhood and abandonment, and the suffocating power of guilt.

 The Bottom Line…

While it might not have the standard-changing impact or the dynamism of his earlier work; ‘Julieta’ is still a masterfully crafted Almodóvar drama which is more memorable than most of his recent work, a well-acted, interweaving heart-wrencher with impeccable style and a soundtrack to match.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Volver (2006)

Unique Almodóvar black dramedy starring Penelope Cruz as one of the many women in an eccentric family struggling with life’s emotional demands, whose deceased mother returns from the dead to unexpectedly stay with her, and in the process work through the unresolved family issues that were unaddressed when she was alive.

Directed by Pedro Almodóvar and starring Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura and Lola Dueñas among others.

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