JULIETA
Spain, 2016, 99 minutes, Colour.
Emma Suarez, Adriana Ugarte, Michelle Jenner, Rossy de Palma, Inma Cuesta, Daniel Grao, Dario Grandinetti.
Directed by Pedro Almodovar.
This is a quietly interesting portrait of women from Spain.
For over 30 years, Pedro Almodovar has been at the head of the Spanish film revival after the Franco era. Beginning with slighter, more comic films, he moved into more serious explorations of Spanish society, winning Catholic awards for All About My Mother, Oscar awards for Talk To Her, challenging the Catholic Church and the sexual abuse crisis in Mal Educacion. He has been pr on aised for his films exploring the characters and psyche of women.
Julieta is a middle-aged woman, living in Madrid, planning to move with her partner to Portugal, eager for the move, engaged in packing. By chance, in the street, she encounters a young woman she used to know as a girl who gives her information about her daughter who has been missing from Spain for 13 years. This has profound repercussions for Juliata, sending her back into her memories, sending her back to her regrets, and breaking the plan to move from Madrid.
What occupies her then is writing to her daughter, without real hope of being able to send it, explaining herself, her life, her relationship with her daughter’s father, her growing up and the tragedy that struck them.
This means that the central part of the film is told in flashback. Almodovar has chosen two actresses for the younger Julieta, Adriana Ugarte, and for the older, Emma Suarez, very similar in looks and manner which makes the character most credible.
Because we see Julieta disturbed by the news about her daughter, she initially appears very serious so that we are quite surprised at the beginning of the flashback when Julieta, a temporary classics teacher, engages a class with stories of mythology and the sea with great vivacity. She has a mysterious experience on a train, a passenger near her disappearing, the train unexpectedly stopping, and the finding of his body – and she is moved to blame herself for not responding to him in the train carriage.
But she does encounter a man on the train, goes to visit him in his seaside house, is pregnant and gives birth to their daughter.
While there are some scenes of the daughter as a little girl, there is more focus on her as a teenager, going to a youth camp, becoming friends with the young girl from Madrid, going to stay with her – at the very time the tragedy strikes.
It is meant as a compliment to say that the film and the narrative are not sensationalist, not for hope and stated. Here is the story of a woman, younger and older, a wife, mother who suffers for years at the disappearance of her daughter.
The final scene, again understated, when Julieta is seen driving to Portugal with her partner, is one of hope.
1. The films of Pedro Almodovar? His insights into Spain? Into women?
2. The title, the focus on Julieta, a woman’s story, the older Julieta and her memories, her relationships, the regrets about her daughter, her writing the story for her daughter?
3. Madrid, the Spanish countryside, the country towns, the seaside town in Galicia, the waters of the storm? Her father’s farm in Andalusia? The interiors of the homes? The musical score?
4. The introduction, Julieta packing, ready to leave Madrid, her love for Lorenzo, a year in preparation for the move? The chance meeting Beatriz in the street? News of her daughter? The revelation and its effect? Keeping it a secret from Lorenzo? The decision to stay, her moving apartment, moving in?
5. Lorenzo, his character, the puzzle, his hopes, meeting Julieta in the past, his friendship with Ava, the book, their meeting again, developing the relationship? Ava in the hospital? Ava bequeathing Lorenzo to Julieta? His understanding, following Julieta, bringing her the memento – and the letter?
6. The young Julieta, teaching, exhilaration, Ulysses, the myths of Calypso, the different meanings of the sea? On the train, the man in the compartment, the train stopping, hitting the man, seeing his body brought back, her sense of guilt for not responding to him? Her talking to Xaon, the sexual encounter, the bond between them, her becoming pregnant? Finishing her teaching, the message to visit him, the encounters with Marian, intending to go, staying, the time together, remaining? On the boat and the sea? Her pregnancy? The birth of the daughter, the effect on her?
7. Xaon, character, his love for Julieta, his liaison with Ava while she was away, the secret of the years, the discovery of the truth, the impact on Julieta, her anger, Xaon going out, on the boat, the storm, his drowning? The news on the television?
8. Her daughter, her birth, childhood, with her grandparents? The years passing, the happy childhood, with her father, fishing? Her not wanting to go to the youth camp? Being persuaded to go, the phone calls, the friendship with Beatriz, Beatriz’s mother inviting her to stay? The holiday? Julieta and the experience of her husband’s death, going to Madrid to explain the situation? The decision to stay in Madrid – and the daughter going to sell the house, the discussions with Marian, discovering the truth about her father’s death?
9. Ava, her at work, the making of the figures, Julieta packing the figure at the beginning, Lorenzo and his gift of the figure?
10. Julieta, her background in the country, her mother being ill, love for her, sharing the room with her? Her father, his giving up teaching, farming? His relationship with the young woman, her work, care for Julieta’s mother, the sexual relationship? Her dressing her mother up to sit in the garden? Her mother’s death, her father’s behaviour?
11. The daughter, her decision to go on a retreat in the mountains, the three months? Julieta arriving to pick her up, her daughter gone, the counsellor’s explanations, the destination a secret, Julieta upset, the passing of the years?
12. Encounter with Beatriz, the later conversation, Beatriz of the friendship with the daughter, the daughter misinterpreting it, the pressure on Beatriz, going to New York, her job? Information that the daughter was married and had children?
13. Marian, her dislike of Julieta, her poisoning her daughter’s mind?
14. The daughter’s letter, the news, having children, one of the children dying – and Lorenzo pointing out that there was a return address?
15. The final scene of Lorenzo and Julieta driving from Madrid into the countryside and to…?
