Pedro Almodóvar: Talk to Her

Director/Writer – Pedro Almodóvar

Cast                                               Character

Javier Camara                 …           Benigno Martin

Dario Grandinetti          …            Marco Zuluaga

Leonor Watling              …            Alicia

Rosario Flores                 …           Lydia Gonzalez

Mariola Fuentes              …           Rosa

Geraldine Chaplin            …          Katerina Bilova

Pina Bausch                    …           Bailarina Café Muller

Malou Airaudo                …          Bailarine Café Mullet

Caetano Veloso                …         Singer at Party

Roberto Álvarez              …          Doctor Vega

Elena Anaya                    …          Angela

                                                  Lola Dueñas                   …          Matilde

The film Talk to Her begins at an opera with Marco and Benigno in the audience. Benigno talks to the comatose Alicia as if she’s conscious. The male feminine is in contrast to the female masculine of Lydia as she is a female bullfighter. The male feminine is shown when Marco cries at the play performance in the beginning. “When Marco cries in the early stages of the film he is crying for himself, for his own pain.” (Shpall 100)

 

After Marco kills a snake in Lydia’s house she vows never to return to her home. Lydia later has an elaborate dressing for her bullfighter attire. Before the bullfight Lydia kisses a religious necklace she has for protection. She gets hit by the bull.  “It is also important that Niño and Marco seem to compete with each other  in claiming responsibility for Lydia’s goring. Presumably they each think that Lydia was distracted on account of them.” (Shpall 99)

“The film has four works of art embedded in it. There are two dances by Pina Bausch that occupy key positions, the opening and closing shots of the films. There is the long song , "Cucurrucucú paloma" not so much sung as confided by the tenor Caetano Veloso. And there is a silent movie The Shrinking Lover, created by Almodóvar himself. We and the characters are spectators of them. They have little to do directly with the plot, just as art is separate from life. However Spaniards regard bullfighting as more an art than a sport, and bullfighting has a lot to do with this plot.” (Holland)

During a Caetano Veloso performance, Marco cries again. He does this many times during the film. Marco tells Lydia a story of him crying after killing another snake for a woman years ago. He is slow to forget her. This has stunted his emotional development and maturity.  He remembers this in flashback. A doctor tells Marco that Lydia’s brain is dead. Marco and Benigno meet as Marco was looking in on him helping a patient called Alicia. “Marco is as superficially masculine as Benigno is superficially feminine.” (Shpall 104) Benigno is in love with Alicia. Marco is in love with Lydia. Both women are comatose. 

Benigno reveals to Alicia’s father he is mostly into men and that he is a virgin after being asked. Katerina talks to the comatose Alicia with Benigno nearby. Katerina is her dancing teacher. Benigno watches Alicia dance at the studio in flashback. He borderline stalks her and finds out her father is a psychiatrist. He sees the shrink and tells him of his mother’s death. He wonders around the office until he gets to Alicia’s room and takes her hairclip. Weird. Benigno reveals to Marco Alicia had a car accident on a rainy day and that is why she ended up in the hospital. 

Benigno suggests that Marco talk to her, Lydia and Marco says she’s brain dead. Benigno says he’s not so sure about that. Marco asks him what does he know about women three times. Benigno says he was with one for 20 years, his mom presumably and another for 4 years, Alicia. So he knows nothing. Angela and Benjamin get married and Marco says to Lydia he’s finished with Angela. Marco says it took him 10 years to get over her. 

“Marco is an immature man whose selfishness makes him unable to love. He is missing the fundamental virtue of love, the desire to talk to one’s partner, to participate in a genuine dialogue of selves. We get the impression that travel is for him an escape from the painful difficulties of social relations and the consuming fixations of his own desire.” (Shpall 100)

A nurse lets Benigno know Alicia is late on her period like a month late. Later we find out Benigno has raped her.

Benigno says he wants to marry Alicia to Marco. Marco tells him his relationship to Alicia is a crazy monologue. A head doctor announces to everyone working, “Our patient Alicia Roncero was raped and is pregnant.” Benigno is told he is the prime suspect. Later Marco reads that Lydia Gonzalez has died. 

On the phone a nurse explains to Marco Benigno is in jail for raping Alicia. He is in jail in Segovia. Benigno wants another lawyer because the current one despises him and to rent out his apartment. Marco takes care of these two things. Marco watches Alicia do exercises at the dace studio from Benigno’s apartment. Maybe he is remembering or imagining her do these things because she is still in a coma.  Alicia’s baby is born dead. Benigno writes to Marco saying he will escape prison. Marco goes to the prison to read a letter written by Benigno. 

He writes that he hopes with all the pills he will take it will put him in a coma with Alicia. If he kills himself it will be the smartest thing he could do than do prison time. I have been in prison and if I knew what I was going to lose in prison I would have killed myself a long time ago.

Marco cries for his friend who he now visits at his grave. Marco meets Alicia at the play/performance and presumably they start a relationship together.

Works Cited:

Shpall, Sam. “The Men of Talk to Her.” Yale University

Holland, Norman N. “Pedro Almodóvar, Talk to Her, Hable con Ella, 2002” A Sharper Focus. 28 February 2018.