Julieta
Julieta (Emma Suárez: Hazing) is preparing to move to Portugal with her boyfriend when a blast from her past detonates her plans. Julieta runs into Bea (Michelle Jenner: We Need to Talk), her daughter Antía’s (Blanca Parés: Pasión Criminal) former best friend. Bea mentions running into Antía and her children while on vacation.
The news is devastating to Julieta, who reported Antía missing 12 years ago.
Julieta falls into obsession trying to work out why her daughter would abandon her with no explanation. As Julieta gets closer to madness, she chronicles the story of her relationship with Antía, searching for clues as to what went wrong. She begins a letter, detailing her past, hoping one day it will heal their rift.
Based on a collection of short stories by Alice Munro, Julieta is a moody, fascinating drama from Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar (I’m So Excited!). Almodóvar specializes in telling women’s stories in movies about women, with predominantly female casts. Julieta is no exception, and Almodóvar takes pains to explore the ways that women relate and care for each other. He spends a lot of the movie exploring themes like grief, shock and love.
Almodóvar also brings his signature style to the film. Color palates are vivid and camera work elegant. An Almodóvar film is an exploration of artistic film as a medium, each shot composed like a painting.
Jumping through time allows multiple actresses to play each role. Performances blend seamlessly, creating a story chronicling the evolution of four relationships. As middle-aged Julieta, Suárez is stunning. Her Julieta is a broken woman who pieced her life together after Antía’s disappearance, only to have it disassembled. As young Julieta, Adriana Ugarte (Palm Trees in the Snow) offers a beautiful performance of a woman who can’t quite cope with life after a trauma. The two actresses work together to create a single fluid portrait of a woman battered by life.
You’ll find a few flaws. The overlying mystery raises more questions than it answers, and Almodóvar never fully delves into the mother-daughter relationship at the center of the film. It’s one of the rare films that may have benefited from an extra half hour. Still, Julieta is well worth the trip to D.C. or Baltimore for a screening.
A mystery film about how well you know the ones you love, Julieta is a beautiful study on the natures of female relationships.
Good Drama • R • 96 mins. • with subtitles