¡Peeeedro! #07

7. Law of desire (La Ley del Deseo)

Desire is like gravity. You cannot escape it. And Almodóvar understands that perfectly. As perfectly as he accomplishes filmmaking. How great is this film? From the first (super hot) scene, to that heartbreaking end, the film is pure perfection. The scene where Carmen Maura's character is playing Cocteau's The Human Voice is one of my personal favorites because I love when Pedro loves theatre. I also adore the scene in the park when the gardener wets Tina. And it is one of the best works Antonio Banderas has ever done (Be patient! We will get to his best performance...) as the consumed lover he plays. Because Antonio desires Pablo (Eusebio Poncela's character), but he is also in love. Tragically in love (in tragedies people die at the end, that's the clue). So good. So, so good.

¡Peeeedro! #08

8. Bad Education (La Mala Educación)

Bad Education was the first film by Almodóvar I ever saw. I saw it when it opened in theaters. I was 15 years old, discovering my sexuality and it was possibly the first film in which I saw sex scenes with two men (the first film not involving a weak plot with a fireman or a plumber or something like that and 5 lines of dialogue altogether). And I remember having a huge... crush on Gael García Bernal. The film is exquisite specially when I revisited it knowing something about film noir. Almodóvar is a master at making his very diverse genres and this film is no exception. Filled with vibrant colors, drag queens, religion, filmmaking and, of course, the tensions between fiction and reality, this movie is greatly great. I mean García Bernal is a Femme Fatale!! How genius is that? And it is also remarkable how the lack of women is not deadly pernicious in an Almodovarian film...

¡Peeeedro! #09

9. Talk to Her (Hable con Ella)

To be fair, I must say that I don't recall this film perfectly. Nevertheless, even though the first time I was reluctant to some of its parts (the shrinking man comes to mind), the second time I watched it everything felt right into place (the shrinking man is almost the most important scene in the film). I would say it is the first film by Almodóvar to be consciously mature. And that is so great... The movie is exuberant in all its color, smart in all its script and the performances are unbelievably good. For me, Javier Cámara was an annoying "funny" guy up until this film. Leonor Watling does little acting outside the bed and the little she does is precious. Darío Grandinetti is one of the best Almodóvar boys and one of the less recognised. And Rosario Flores, who up until then was a singer in whose music I had not (and still don't have) the least interest, gives a solid and powerful performance, one of those that lingers on the viewer's mind long after seeing the film. And of course, a song: Cucurrucú (o Cucurrucucú, isn't that right Davigüi?) Paloma...

¡Peeeedro! #10

10. Kika

Kika is such a good person. She will only complain a little during a raping and not even that much. Besides she is a great make-up artist. If it wasn't because of the evil men that surround her, or the incomparable Andrea Caracortada (something like Andrea Scarface) the movie would have been much happier and less entertaining. If it wasn't because of Anabel Alonso's gigantic boobs or a fully naked Bibiana Fernández (Bibí Andersen back then) singing Luz de Luna, the film would have been a lot less Almodovarian. And I haven't even mentioned Rossy de Palma or the Brechtian references... What a great film...

¡Peeeedro! #11

11. Dark Habits (Entre Tinieblas)

Pedro and Religion. An inseparable duo. Thank God (i.e. Pedro himself)! Because this film is as delicious as it is dark and twisty. The first film by Almodóvar to deal with something different than la movida is incredibly precise at depicting the essence of Spanish religiousness (though I would say real nuns have less vices). Using a "saintly" figure in Yolanda Bel and a believer in the Abadesa Julia, Pedro connects the religious feeling with a sadomasochistic relationship. Throw in a few musical numbers, a tiger and hilarious (yet scary) names for the nuns and you'll get yet another Almodóvar's masterpiece.

¡Peeeedro! #12

12. The flower of my secret (La flor de mi secreto)

Well, it's a good thing I started this now and not a year from now, because by then it should have been a Top 15+3... ¡¡¡LA PIEL QUE HABITO!!! Ok. I'm fine. It's only a year away... Right now I'm going to focus on what Mr. Pedro did fifteen years ago. And it was delighting audiences with The Flower of my Secret, the story of a writer of romantic novels (portrayed by Marisa Paredes) who is not precisely in her best personal moment. As I've summed up the plot it looks like a Katherine Heighl romantic comedy but this is Almodóvar we're talking about so themes are not to be treated lightly. Pedro, always exploring the ways in which human beings communicate chooses in this film literature to compare fiction and reality, perfectly exemplified in the scene with the "fake" doctors. Not the only great sceneof the film. The one with the manifestation is as epic and classic as Gone with the Wind. Not rare in a film so abundant with references to other movies. Definitely rocks, rocks everywhere.

¡Peeeedro! #13

13. What have I done to deserve this? (¿Qué he hecho yo para merecer esto!!)

A movie of firsts and lasts. First true protagonist for Carmen Maura, first appearance of Verónica Forqué (both in the picture, the latter with a man on top of her). It is also the last movie by Pedro to include paranormal activities (that telekinetic child and her mother are priceless). A great portrayal of the Spanish urban working classes and a great anti-melodrama. I mean, in melodrama, small things can be the hardest of all but in this film everything is approached from distance and humor. A mother leaves her child with a pedophiliac dentist, an aspiring star is working as a prostitute, a lonely old lady loses "Money"... Terrible dramas taken lightly.

¡Peeeedro! #14

14. Pepi, Luci, Bom (y otras chicas del montón)

Almodóvar's first film is not his best. But it is so lively, hopeful, optimistic and fun that is, if not a masterpiece, certainly a cult piece. Its portrayal of the "movida" is so fun and apparently truthful (I wouldn't know, when I was born the "movida" was sadly over) that you can't help but fall in love not only with the three main women but with the whole cast.

¡Peeeedro! #15

15. Matador (1986)

I don't recall this movie very well (and it is the last Almodóvar I have seen) but I'm already thinking that Labyrinth of Passion is better what goes to prove that this Top 15+2 is pointless because I change my mind instantly and perpetually (just as often as Ares download speed changes). Well, and now while choosing a picture to post I'm thinking it is great again (BIPOLAR!).

The story was intriguing enough, the performances were wonderful (Assumpta Serna, I'm looking at you...) and it was a great depiction of the relationship between sex and death. Yes, definitely a masterpiece.

¡Peeeedro! (Honorable Mentions)

Is there a better way to start something (a blog, for instance) than Mr. Pedro Almodóvar? If there is, I'm not aware of it (and I don't want to be). So here it is: Almodóvar's Top 15 (plus 2 honorable mentions)!!

Honorable Mentions

Live Flesh (Carne Trémula) 1997

This is Pedro's worst. And "casually" it is his only film to have an adapted screenplay. Casting is not very bright either. Liberto Rabal, Francesca Neri and Javier Bardem are almost difficult to look at. On the other hand José Sancho and Ángela Molina are great and amazing respectively. Also, Pilar Bardem and Penélope Cruz (in his first film with Pedro) show that there are no small roles when it comes to giving powerful performances. It has memorable moments such as the sex scene depicted on the poster or the opening scene with the delivery. It also has that Almodovarian flavor but in very small doses and Almodóvar should not play it subtly.

Labyrinth of Passion (Laberinto de Pasiones) 1982

And now with just one film that I didn't fully enjoy, we're entering true Almodóvar realm. From now on, everything is a masterpiece but for the sake of listing everything, choices must be made. And even though Labyrinth of Passion is a wonderful film, it is not on the Top 15. But I'm not sure that I can say any flaws in it. But I can think of a few good things: the script is hilarious, the ensemble works smoothly and as seen in the picture, Antonio Banderas appears shirtless (remember it was 1982, he was still hot and didn't sport that beard he had at the Oscars...) And as trivia fact, this is Pedro's sole film of the 80s not to star Carmen Maura.