THE SKIN I LIVE IN (Spanish) (2011)

One of the talked about film of the year by Spain’s most acclaimed contemporary filmmaker and Festival circuit favourite Pedro Almodavar. Beneath the thrilling and mysterious drama here’s a film which is unpredictable and bizarre in experience. The plot is abnormal and contrived one with surprising twist to get you hooked. A plastic surgeon experimenting with patient’s burnt skin and challenging the natural order by experimenting Transgenesis on his subject. Than it shifts gears into flashback and we witness the common traits of Almodavar cinema- accidents, drugs, family secrets, tragedies associated with it and complicated characters suffering from sexual disorder and mental trauma and guided by passion and obsession. There’s lot of intrigue in the film in the middle and I won’t ruin the surprise and twist by revealing it as spoiler. 

Almodavar filled the screen with lot of flesh and graphic nudity and considering the skin as one of the senses, it’s sumptuous visual food to notice. Elena Anaya is dame to watch in seasoned hands of tailor of aesthetic skin show but still there’s no alternative for Almodavar’s muse on screen- Penelope Cruz! But what is fresh is to see Antonio Banderas back in form to a role befitting his suave enigmatic persona other than mindless action flicks. The only drawback of the film is it wavering and shifting of theme like the character’s skin without much room for character elaboration. I was expecting a surprising twist or shock in the end but it ended up as considerably quite predictable affair without much conflict.

Ratings-7/10