The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar: A Self-Portrait in Seven Films

Miller (politics and liberal studies, the New Sch.; Can Democracy Work??) examines influences and motivations of Oscar-winning Spanish film director Pedro Almodóvar (b. 1949). Almodóvar has become one of the world’s most esteemed directors with his colorful films that explore themes of identity and sexual fluidity. Almodóvar grew up in a large peasant family under the right-wing dictatorship of Francisco Franco, and his artistic development began to form in the counterculture community that was materializing in the 1960s, a decade before Franco’s death. Miller presents essays on seven Almodóvar films—Volver, Bad Education, Pain and Glory, Broken Embraces, The Flower of My Secret, Law of Desire, and Pepi, Luci, Bom, and Other Girls Like Mom—and explores how the filmmaker’s childhood, family life, culture, and religion (the dark aspect of Catholicism is a prominent theme in his works) all play significant roles in revealing a self-portrait of the artist.