Bad Education

aka: Mala Educación, La
Spain 2004, 101 minutes
Dir. Pedro Almodovar
In Spanish with English subtitles
Rating: [R16]
Genres: Foreign Cinema, Drama / LGBT

Topics: Gender-bender.

Feat. Gael Garcia Bernal, Fele Martinez, Javier Camara

Aroview: Another fascinating work from Almodovar who, after TALK TO HER, again matches his renowned taste in decor with adventurous yet controlled storytelling.

It's unusual three-tier plot tells the story of an ambitious actor and scriptwriter (Mexican superstar Bernal) whose screenplay comes alive in the imagination of a film producer who was also once his childhood friend. The film-within-a-film plot implicates and mutates characters from the 'real world' to intriguing (and gender-bending) effect, serving its main theme of identity, and culminating in a third layer and final reel revelation.