WhatzUp

All About My Mother
by Derek Neff

Cecilia Roth gives a blistering performance in her role as Manuela, a mother in search of her estranged husband after her sonís death, in Pedro Almodovarís All About My Mother. Along the way, Manuela encounters a handful of eccentric, likeable characters: a middle-aged half-transsexual whose outrageous lifestyle is beginning to tire him out; a nun who finds herself pregnant after a short-lived affair; Huma (Penelope Cruz), an aging starlet who feels indirectly responsible for Manuelaís sonís death; and many others.

Almodovarís strength as a storyteller lies in his ability to weave a complex rich tapestry of events and characters and coincidences in such a way that one is constantly taken off guard without ever feeling lost or confused. The story feels almost improvised, until one looks back and sees the careful plan that has been forming all along. The overblown situations feel melodramatic and contrived, but it works because we care about the characters in question.

Almodovar has fashioned a colorful, gleaming jewel

of a movie, a truly inspired film about the deep connections, healthy and unhealthy, formed between mothers and their children. In Spanish, with subtitles.