It’s been 30 years since Spain’s golden-boy filmmaker, Pedro Almodóvar, released the Oscar-nominated, internationally acclaimed “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.”
Known for his puzzle-piece plots and brightly colored palette, the auteur is unafraid of tackling social taboos (so consider this your trigger warning).
But if you’ve never indulged in the artistry of his cinema, have no fear! Almodóvar comes in all flavors, a rainbow-bright collection of more than 20 films — punctuated with this month’s semi-autobiographical “Pain and Glory.” Here are four to get you started, no matter your taste in genre:
Mystery
“Volver” (2006)
Las chicas Almodóvar — the women who rip through Almodóvar’s movies with passion, fury and romance — are front and center in this 2006 stunner led by Penelope Cruz, whose eyes have never been wider or more full of desperate hope. With magical realism aplenty and nods to noir, watch as the women untangle the mystery of a family member who is seemingly back from the dead.
Horror
“The Skin I Live In” (2011)
Almodóvar swaps supreme romance for intense ick in this squirmy body-horror flick. Through the lens of science fiction, Almodóvar streams his usual go-to themes and motifs of sex, identity and abuse and ends up with a shocking piece of entertainment that won’t make you scream, but will make your, ahem, skin crawl.
Comedy
“I’m So Excited!” (2013)
Anna Wintour take note: This is how you do camp. Take one psychic virgin, a sexually confused pilot, a hit man overcome with a sudden sense of morality, a successful dominatrix businesswoman, three fabulous flight attendants with a penchant for drugging their passengers and just a small dash of the Pointer Sisters, and you’ve got the perfect camp cocktail to keep you rocking until landing.
Drama
“Bad Education” (2004)
Nothing will prepare you for the sexual allure of Gael García Bernal in his triple performance as young actor Ángel, trans drag performer Zahara and the mysterious Juan. As handsome as he is feminine, he is the perfect conduit for a movie full of contradictions. Tackling sexual abuse and the Catholic church long before the #MeToo movement, “Bad Education” was ahead of its time and still relevant.