Anybody who has read this blog over the years would know that I am an Almodovar nut. He just makes films that I adore and I cannot remember the last time I disliked one. He creates cinema candy I can't help but devour, and “Bitter Christmas” continues this long running trend. His latest almost plays out like a sequel to his 2019 film “Pain and Glory”, as it deals with a writer/director (and obvious cinematic avatar for Almodovar himself) who is struggling to write a script for his new film, his first in five years. The majority of “Bitter Christmas” is actually a film-within-a-film, as it is the script Raúl is currently writing, and it changes as Raúl makes alterations to the script with seemingly important characters suddenly disappearing, whilst brand new ones appear when inspiration strikes Raúl. The confusing part about this, especially in the context of this review, is that the project Raúl is writing is also titled “Bitter Christmas”, so I will have to differentiate between when I am talking about the Almodovar film [A] as opposed to the film-within-a-film [FWF].
The main crux of the drama in “Bitter Christmas”[A] is that it deals with the ethics of the screenwriting art and whether or not everything in real life is fair game to be used as inspiration, despite who it may hurt in the process. In other words, does the author have any responsibility towards the person whose real life experience has become the inspiration for a part of their fictional story? This dilemma comes up late in the film, when Raúl alters the finale of his script for “Bitter Christmas” [FWF] to include a new character who attempts suicide after losing her child in a car accident whilst she was driving. However the inspiration for this late addition came from his former assistant, Mónica, whose partner just attempted suicide after the death of her son from brain cancer. Mónica is absolutely furious that Raúl would be so insensitive to include such a personal and tragic detail of her life, for his script, particularly while the pain is still so fresh and raw. However, Raúl doesn't see the problem, citing that his story is “fictional” and that the child in his story dies in a completely different way, but Mónica is having none of it, their friendship fractured forever. As she parts, she calls Raúl an emotional vampire, sucking all the tragedy and experiences from people's lives just to use for the basis of his scripts. Raúl still cannot see that he has done anything wrong, but what is interesting about this is that the main character of “Bitter Christmas”[FWF], Elsa, is also a writer/director who loses a very close friendship over her decision to use the very raw and personal story of her friend's marriage break-up as inspiration for her own comeback film. She too uses the same argument of it being a fictional tale, as if that washes all responsibility from her. The thing is Raúl writes this part of the story “before” he has his falling out with Mónica, so he is clearly aware of what he is doing and of his vampiric quality before he is actually accused of it, so he is on shaky ground when he claims he is innocent of such a thing.
As I mentioned earlier, the majority of “Bitter Christmas”[A] is actually a visual representation of the script Raúl is writing and changes regularly as he rewrites elements of his story. At times this can cause a jarring effect, particularly when it comes to the character of Beau, who has initially been set up as a main character within “Bitter Christmas”[FWF] who then ultimately disappears from it, the more the story continues. This is also true of the very late introduction of Natalia, who then turns out to be the most important character of “Bitter Christmas”[FWF], but is nowhere to be seen in the early sections of the script with her name only mentioned once, before she shows up. While it feels a little odd, it is also the part of the point of “Bitter Christmas”[A], which is really an examination of the screenwriting process and how ideas and stories are formed through inspiration and life. While it may feel like Almodovar is making a misstep in the story presentation of the film-within-a-film, it is not actually the case, as after Mónica reads Raúl's finished script for “Bitter Christmas”[FWF], she highlights all the same issues I had with it up until that point (main character disappearing, new character appearing far too late into the story), so Almodovar himself clearly knows what he is doing here.
This is obviously quite a personal picture from Pedro Almodovar, and it makes you wonder just how many friendships he may have lost or damaged throughout his career, all under the guise of inspiration, and whether or not he now feels regret for this later in his life. Almodovar also has a bit of fun at his own expense when Mónica complains to Raúl that he is using the death of his mother in yet another film (Almodovar commented on his own mother's death in “Pain and Glory”), and that she feels that the “Bitter Christmas”[FWF] script would be perfect for a short hour length film for Netflix who want him, which is something that also happened in real life to Almodovar but which he turned down. Mónica also makes the stinging comment that Raúl is now late in his career and that he has already made all of his best works, all that is left from him are minor works, which makes you wonder if this is how Pedro Almodovar feels about his own career at the moment which, in fairness, is probably true.It is no surprise to see another impressive female performance in an Almodovar film, and Barbara Lennie gives a wonderful multi-faceted performance as Elsa, the former writer/director, current advertising executive in the film-within-a-film. She goes through quite a number of emotions from feeling stuck in a relationship she no longer wants to be a part of, to caring for friends who are going through issues in their lives, to intense guilt over being absent during her mother's passing, to being revitalised and full of energy when she rediscovers her passion for film making. The constant through-line throughout Lennie's performance is the heart she gives Elsa; she is a character who wears her feelings on her sleeve. What is interesting though because she is a fictional character being written and re-written, her character arc isn't really a natural one. Leonardo Sbaraglia plays Raúl, the writer/director of “Bitter Christmas”[FWF], and while his performance is fine, it pales in comparison to Antonio Banderas' stunning turn in “Pain and Glory”, as the two characters are essentially the same guy (although he is named Salvador in “Pain and Glory”). He just lacks the natural charisma of Banderas, and Sbaraglia's rendition of the character comes across as more whiny and self serving, with a less humorous outlook on life. One performance that I liked a lot was Patrick Criado who plays Beau, Elsa's much younger firefighter/stripper boyfriend. What could have just been the token hot guy in the film, Criado is able to turn Beau into a fully rounded character, and it is a shame as he is slowly disappears from the film. The striptease scene he performs is a standout, and I am sure something the ladies will enjoy. I also have to mention Aitana Sanchez-Gijon who is excellent, and at times frightening, as Mónica, Raúl's former assistant, and it was so nice to see Rossy De Palma appear in a small role.
As you would expect, “Bitter Christmas”[A] looks like an Almodovar film through and through, bursting with colour and his usual stylised décor. What is surprising though is that he is working with a different cinematographer here, Pau Esteve Birba, and this is the first film they have collaborated on, but Birba seems to have had no problem emulating that famous Almodovar look. For once though, I found Alberto Iglesia's score to be a little underwhelming, where it is only memorable in two spots, the opening credits and towards the end when Raúl finally catches an idea he loves, firing up his creative juices once more, and I think Iglesia's score accurately reflects that moment perfectly. Speaking of the ending, I personally thought it was great, but from the audible groan heard throughout the cinema when the credits began, I think it obviously doesn't work for everyone and I could see people finding it a little anticlimactic. You probably need to expect going into this, that you will also not get a satisfactory ending to the film-within-a-film, which can be off-putting after investing so much time into it.
Overall, “Bitter Christmas”[A] is another Almodovar gem, although I would still regard it as a minor film in his stunning career. Like a lot of his late-period work, it has more than a hint of melancholy attached to it, as it looks at the screenwriting process, the ethics of the art, in particular when it comes to real life inspiration. The film looks amazing (loved the volcanic beaches with its black sand) and it is ably performed by it's entire cast. It wont be for everyone, but I liked it a whole lot.
3.5 Stars.
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