leplatypus Coming from me, it's not a congratulation. As Allen, I think that Almodovar is a highly overrated director that is praised for his touch, his universe whereas his movies are tedious, boring, dull and above all, it's a cinema about high society empty of any social consciousness and famous for his beautiful actresses.Here, he deals with two of the worst themes that I can't stand when I watch a movie: first, it's about a movie production so it's the ground zero of filmmaking , the empty void of imagination. The director has just to put his camera and says that's my story! With the extra, you can see that the "imagined" director acts similarly as Almodavar himself.Next, it happens among the mighty: the jealous boyfriend is a very rich business man who has tied with the politics! This confirms Almodovar's lack of imagination as such a background is totally unbelievable or at least uninteresting. Who cares about their "f…ing" lives? Do they really think it's entertainment for us? Do they really want to show us what's they can do with power and money: well, I see that they mistake sexual harassment for love but it's not news anymore… And for those who thinks that Almdovar shoots hymns to women, I find that he only sees them as object, to be grasp and embrace like the movie's title!What's left? A cute Penélope whose effort to looks like the late Audrey Hepburn is successful. Few inspired cameras movement that reminds me of David Lynch as Almodovar plays with projected images. The movie is full of colors, makes a trip to Lanzarote but it's not enough. In conclusion, I notice that this movie is from 2009 at a time when Almodovar's country was in crisis with high level of unemployment, rise of poverty and contesting. To shoot such a movie when his fellows suffer is stupidity or provocation and surely a sign of decadent artist! It's like everything crumbles around him and he doesn't seem to care. A recommendation: Pedro, look at your people and you will find inspiration!

Murtaza Ali Pedro Almodóvar's Broken Embraces (2009) is a strange yet intriguing work of cinema. A heartbreaking tale of love, Broken Embraces highlight's the Spanish filmmaker's love for filmmaking as well the medium, which is underlined by the following line spoken by the movie's protagonist: "No, what matters is to finish it. Films have to be finished, even if you do it blindly." Almodóvar is not the first filmmaker to pay homage to cinema. Time and time again, filmmakers have used their films to express their overwhelming love for the medium: be it Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Federico Fellini, Jean-Luc Godard, Giuseppe Tornatore, Abbas Kiarostami, Robert Altman, or Martin Scorsese. Broken Embraces (2009) is far from being a masterpiece. In fact, it's not even Almodóvar's best film, but it does have its moments that are enough to make it worthy of a watch. Almodóvar seems to have perfected his unique style by borrowing bits and pieces from the masters of cinema. Those who have followed Alfred Hitchcock's body of work closely would know that sex and humor were two of his major elements. And Almodóvar, a great fan of the Master of Suspense, too relies heavily on these two powerful elements often blending them with an equally potent weapon: social commentary. And like Hitchcock, Almodóvar loves to revisit his old works in an effort to further refine his quaint yet effective ideas. In fact, it is not very difficult for the keen-eyed viewers to spot the recurring patterns in Pedro Almodóvar's films, just like in Hitchcock's. And Broken Embraces is no different in this regard with the ever so ambitious Almodóvar trying to borrow and improvise upon certain ideas from his breakthrough film, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988).While the comparisons between Hitchcock and Almodóvar are endless, one similarity that just cannot be overlooked is their insatiable love for technical mastery. There is a brilliant sequence in Broken Embraces that that underlines the remarkable quality of editing (and technical excellence) in Almodóvar's films. In the very scene, a rotating CD can be seen fading into a cylindrical staircase as the movie's protagonist climbs down the stairs. The scene is highly reminiscent of the editing techniques employed by Hitchcock in one of his early masterpieces: Sabotage (1936). Overall, Broken Embraces, at best, serves to be a guilty pleasure. Almodóvar's obsession to experiment with his old ideas in trying to embed them into the new ones ends up overloading the film with at least one excessive plot line. The best ways to savor Broken Embraces is to either treat it as a homage to filmmaking or to look upon it as a exercise in style. Regardless of the excesses, Broken Embraces will prove to be a great film viewing experience for Almodóvar fans and also for those who understand and appreciate powerful world cinema. 7/10For more, please visit my film blogsite:http://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/

skysaxon It took a couple of viewings for me to fully appreciate Broken Embraces. Almodovar unravels the complex tale of Harry Caine with unusual skill and nuance. A times sublime - especially the use of Penelope Cruz on silent film while her flesh and blood speaks the lines - and other times hilarious - the film within film, Girls and Suitcases - this movie never overextends itself, perfectly unveiling layer after layer. All the performances hit the mark, Blanca Portillo in particular. Lluis Homar manages to sell his role, despite the difficulty of playing blind and seeing. As usual with Almodovar, the cinematography is spell-bending. The El Golfo beach shots perfectly capturing the disorienting predicaments of the main characters.If you've already watched Broken Embraces, watch it again. And then again. It remains fresh and intriguing yet reveals more and more gems with each viewing.

Turfseer For me, an Almodovar film is always a mixed bag. Broken Embraces is no exception. On the plus side, you have the consistently excellent dialogue that always features interesting information. For example, at the beginning of the film, Harry Caine (formerly Mateo) with his agent and former lover, Judit, discuss adapting a true-life story about playwright Arthur Miller, who placed his mentally handicapped child in an institution. There's another scene where Harry and Diego come up with a clever idea for a new screenplay—a group of vampires who work at a blood bank. The whole idea is very creative but it goes on too long (like so many other aspects of Almodovar's scenes); and when the two add in all the sexual jokes, I just wondered, is all this necessary?Some internet posters felt that Diego's accidental overdose was an unnecessary scene which added little to the overall plot. It did go on a bit too long but obviously served as a device to introduce the series of flashbacks which Harry relates to Diego as he tells the story of his affair with Lena. For awhile, Almodovar emulates Hitchcock, and it appears that Broken Embraces is headed for neo-noir territory. Almodovar introduces us to the enigmatic Ray X, Ernesto Martel's insecure gay son, who trails Lena and Mateo around with his camcorder while they conduct their furtive affair during the filming of Mateo's new comedy 'Chicas y Maletas'. And then there's another unique character, Lola, the lip reader who Martel hires to try and deduce what Lena and Mateo are up to.Despite the unique setup and characters, Almodovar is unable to sustain the suspense which we would expect from a film which is modeled on Hitchcock. In a scene straight out of the 1945 tear-jerker, Leave Her to Heaven, Martel, consumed with jealousy, (and channeling Gene Tierney), pushes Lena down the stairs. The film virtually grinds to a halt after Lena and Mateo decide to flee from Madrid and Lena takes a job at a tourist hotel. Almodovar does answer one of the central questions of the film—how did Harry end up going blind? I suppose it's best that he doesn't have Martel take revenge on Harry by blinding him. It's fate that ends up doing Harry in—a chance car accident that takes his eyesight and kills Lena at the same time. Ernesto does take his revenge by cutting up 'Chicas y Maletas'.If the car accident seems anti-climactic, the film's denouement appears even more so. Judit confesses first that Harry is Diego's father. She further confesses that she accepted money from Martel in exchange for revealing the whereabouts of Lena and Mateo while they were on the run back in 1994. This allowed Ernesto Jr. to film Mateo and Lena's last kiss before the unfortunate car accident. Judit makes it clear however, that Junior had nothing to do with the car accident—that it was simply a matter of fate. Fortunately, she saved the original takes of 'Chicas y Maletas' and Mateo and Diego get to work on re-editing the 'masterpiece'. Even better, Harry decides to dispense with his Harry altar ego and goes back to being Mateo. In that respect, Mateo's character arc is complete.The film could have ended right there but no Almodovar has to show us scenes from the re-cut 'Chicas y Maletas'. And no, unfortunately, it's not the comic masterpiece, he would like his audience to think it is! It's just another example of Almodovar's tendency toward overkill in his overall approach toward film making.Broken Embraces features rich cinematography with a plethora of arresting images. You also cannot go wrong with the actors here from Lluis Homar's low key but intense Harry and the over the top but thoroughly enjoyable Penelope Cruz. With some judicious editing (particularly with the final film within a film), Broken Embraces could have been a much better film. With Almodovar, too much of a good thing is not always good.