Rating: 
Summary: great dvd edition of another fine Almodovar film
Review: Manuela has just lost her son in a traffic accident and travels to Barcelone to look up old friends, including the transvestite who abandoned her 18 years ago never knowing she was pregnant. She reestablishes old friendships and makes new acquaintances as she looks for the father, and finds him at the end of the film.One interesting thing about this film is the concept of gender. Almodovar is a director who typically works with strong actresses and writes well for women, and this film, dedicated to actresses and mothers, is particularly interesting as an exploration of female relationships. In "An Intimate Conversation with Pedro Almodovar", a 24-minute dvd feature, he states that one of the ideas he wants to examine is the "natural solidarity of women" -- not your typical take on female relations, at least in the US. These are women who are lost or experiencing loss, and they bring strength to each other and build friendships even in their grief. There are few men in the film, and though they are pivotal to the action they are only tangentially present -- one dies, two are transvestites and one has advanced Alzheimer's. Another thread that runs through the film is the play A Streetcar Named Desire. Manuela met her husband while playing Stella to his Kowalski; later her son is killed after they see this play together, and she eventually befriends the actress who plays Blanche. There are few dvd extras but they will add to your enjoyment of the film. In additon to the conversation with Almodovar, in which he explains themes of the film as well as the process of writing and directing, there is a 3-minute making-of featurette and talent files for several of the actors and the director. The film can be heard in Spanish with English or French subtitles, or you can watch the film with only the soundtrack playing. The music is very nice. As usual with Almodovar films, this one is emotionally riveting and thought-provoking -- a great film to see with friends or on your own. Another success for this intelligent and provocative director-writer.
Rating: 
Summary: Man is a Woman is a Man
Review: This movie stages a strange scenario. A son looks for his father but dies in an auto accident. Then the mother looks for the father to tell him of his son's death except the father is a transvestite. He's also something of a lady's man, so go figure. Almodovar, directing with great sensitivity and intelligence, understands life is rife with absurdities, which, however, do not make the eternal themes of love and pain any less real. The man who plays the father is a strange creature, indeed. On the one hand, totally ridiculous, yet... there's something 'beautiful' about him, like in an exotic species of bird, that explains why men and women, against their better judgment, have fallen under his spell.
That the son never discovers this fact but we do in his stead somehow links us closer with the emotions in the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Essential to the true film fanatic
Review: "All About My Mother" eschews the trite little star-studded pap that passes for drama in Hollywood these days, and carries with it a tremendous pedigree: masterful acting (some of the best I've seen in years), a great script, and possibly the most underrated director in film today, Pedro Almodovar. Almodovar has hit a few bumps in his time ("Live Flesh", "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down"), but this one is the goods. Being a guy who digs mindless action flicks as well as tasteful foreign cinema, I can honestly say I almost cried at the end of this one. Cecilia Roth is the rope that anchors the entire cast, made up of old/young/transgendered women, and the emotion that permeates through the screen is considerable. Penelope Cruz? Who knew she could act? I still think they should keep her away from the Hollywood machine; she performs adequately here. As other reviewers have stated, it's a torturous ride, but one that pays off double by the end.
Rating:
Summary: Painful and emotional
Review: When her son is killed, Manuela quietly comes unglued and returns to her old stomping grounds in Barcelona, exploring the fragile strings of friendship that bind her to three other women, a pregnant nun, a prostitute, and an actress. There's a quiet sadness that permeates the otherwise melodramatic events in this movie. It's quite spectacular.
Rating:
Summary: /////////////
Review: The problem with too many "dramas" is that they constantly fall into straightjackets like "tearjerker" or "realist", loaded with terrible amounts of sentimentality or so depressing they're like staring into the sun. Happily, All About My Mother avoids both drops, it's never maudlin nor harsh, and for the most part the characters behave human (rather than psychopathically emotional), which makes the circumstances surrounding them neither too depressing to bear, nor too fantastic. Almodovar's direction is, as always, well paced and shot, providing enough visual spark to heighten interest, but never overwhealming the story. All About My Mother is perfect if you're looking for a well balanced and interesting movie that's neither depressing nor cold. Perhaps it wraps things up a bit too cleanly, but this hardly diminshes it's value as art or entertainment.
Rating:
Summary: Loved it
Review: I loved this movie. Almodovar is very talented at making a movie interesting and a little bit quirky, but very emotionally impacting. The movie confronts many aspects of society, makes you laugh, and can surely make you cry. In Spanish and not a movie for kids, but a good buy.
Rating:
Summary: the power of the woman
Review: Although many thought that this movie was ridiculous and hard to relate to, I admit that Almodovar really points out the strength women have in this film. All men are after women, chase women and want to be women. Also the fact that a lot of the characters are so hard to identify with, makes the audience identify more with the only "normal" character Manuela. This movie is full of symbolism and depth despite the surface of awkward relationships, etc... highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Power of life
Review: I felt I was ready to watch "All about my mother" only after watching Pedro Almodovar "Talk to her" which made me hope that although "all about my mother" is sad and depressing as I was told, it might give me a unique experience.
Indeed I was not disappointed. Surprisingly, although the story is quite sad, the film is not depressing at all and ends with a hopeful note. This is a movie about the power of motherhood, love, and the power of life in general - whatever way you choose to live your life.
Manuela, the heroine, is a strong beautiful woman whose presence fills the screen. Sometimes its enough to only see her without uttering any words. Manuela has a very close relationship with her son, Estaban. Estaban seems to worship his mother and watches her every step in a course of his "preparation" for writing a novel he wishes to term "all about my mother". Indeed, Manuela is a unique person. Her choice of work as a transplant coordinator in a large hospital tells us that Manuela deals with life and death issues on a daily basis. After her son's death Manuela needs to escape from her regular existence in order to put her troubled soul to rest. She makes the journey to Barcelona - from where she ran away 18 years ago to look for the father of her son, in order to tell him of the son he will never get to see. The viewers get to see this father figure only at the end of the movie, but her presence is felt throughout the movie and when we finally see him we have already built a certain image in our minds. Personally, I was not let down. This journey back to her past - or rather, back to the past in order to make a new future shows us that in her essence Manuela has not changed so much through the years. She is a woman capable of great love and giving which does not go unreturned. The love that was totally invested in her son and in her work is now invested in other people.
The movie is visually beautiful to watch all the main characters are beautifully portrayed. Somehow Almodovar managed to make all characters beautiful to watch. Not that they are all physically good looking, but one likes them all and for some reason, you manage to remain not judgmental towards their actions.
I have to add that in a way I find a lot of similarities between "All about my mother" and the book "Kitchen" by the Japanese writer Banana Yoshimoto. Indeed both works have similar traits - whether it is the vitality, the force of life, and even the characters - a man who has turned into a loving woman appears in both. Both artists practice tolerance and acceptance to all forms of life and love.
Rating:
Summary: Can't get any better than this!
Review: Everytime I see one of Pedro Almodovar's movie, I ask myself "How can he top this?" This movie was no exception! A little more on the "commercial" side than his previous movies though. Just ordered "Habla con Ella".
Rating:
Summary: The New Era
Review: We are in a new era. Sex orientation is the theme here and it has become so confusing that the mother wouldn't like her curious teenager son to know anything about his father because he had changed himself into a woman. The father dumped by this pregnant woman later died of aids and before his death passed the disease to a young and noble woman who as a result also died leaving behind her a baby girl. On juxtaposition was a fatal accident which took away the life of this promising youth. His father didn't know that he had a son longed to but never had a chance of seeing him alive before his death. All he got was just a picture and tears. And for the mother, only memories and bittered ones and the burden of another new-borned baby. The setting is in Spain and the way they handled life and these problems exhibits a lot of humanity. Recommended.
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