Hable con Ella (Talk to Her) (2002)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Bob S

  
  One of the best movies i've seen in a while. Great story, great acting. Pathos out the yingyang.

• Jan Marc M

  
  Talk To Her is an offbeat, mature, and mysterious story of passion; and the unappreciated admiration that has developed into something controversial and bizarre. In the most perverse scenario, a lovely story.

• Dan S

  
  A daring, beautiful film concerning two woman who are both in comas, and the men who stay with them and "talk" to them, along the way developing a friendship that encounters some significant strain as well. There is one point where director Pedro Almodovar takes the… More
  A daring, beautiful film concerning two woman who are both in comas, and the men who stay with them and "talk" to them, along the way developing a friendship that encounters some significant strain as well. There is one point where director Pedro Almodovar takes the relationship a bit to far, but other than this minor flaw, this an exceptional melodrama that is beautifully constructed. It has the ability to be funny when it wants to be, as well as incredibly moving, which is extremely difficult to achieve. The acting is sensational across the board, and the ending is just sheer beauty. Definitely not for all tastes, seeing how it romanticizes one of the characters after a horrendous act, but somehow you still end up sympathizing for each and every character in the story, no matter how twisted and creepy they might be.

• Saskia D

  
  Original in a weird way.

• Stella D

  
  i've avoided this as a 'disease' film and i'm sorry i did. stunning work

• Randy T

  
  Pedro Almodóvar continues to confound and amaze me. He can take the most peculiar circumstances, the most perverse scenarios, and extract incredible, romantic love stories. I'm not certain how he does it, but after viewing several of his films I have formed a hypothesis: he… More
  Pedro Almodóvar continues to confound and amaze me. He can take the most peculiar circumstances, the most perverse scenarios, and extract incredible, romantic love stories. I'm not certain how he does it, but after viewing several of his films I have formed a hypothesis: he views situations without prejudice. He ignores preconceived notions. Instead of focusing on the differences, Almodóvar concentrates on the commonality, thus encouraging us (his audience) to see the world with an unjaundice eye. In the end, what might have appalled us is now cause for reflection, maybe even celebration. Confounding and amazing...

• Jennifer X

  
  Whoa, Almodovar knows how to cut where it hurts. A strange story about two very different women and the men that accompany them through their comas. I love how we experience a whole rainbow of emotions, outlined with beautiful dancing sequences and bullfighting shapes.

• E.J. B

  
  Beautiful, poetic, and funny often in unexpected ways until one character made a decision to do something to some girl in a coma that resulted in some other thing that I can't mention here, but this certain something took me completely out of the picture.

• Luke B

  
  Having recently sat through a large number of films dealing with people who have become bedridden (Peter Pan Formula, Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Breaking Waves) Talk to her seemed to be treading similar ground at first. It was still expertly crafted with wonderful performances and… More
  Having recently sat through a large number of films dealing with people who have become bedridden (Peter Pan Formula, Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Breaking Waves) Talk to her seemed to be treading similar ground at first. It was still expertly crafted with wonderful performances and a screenplay with charming dialogue. It wasn't until the incredible third act revelations that the film really captivated me. It changed everything, from the purpose of the film to the chaarcters themselves. Camara goes from giving a sweet natured if slightly offbeat performance into a terrifying cinematic creation. Not terrifying in the sense that he lingers down dark allies and scratches on peoples windows. It's his complete lack of realisation to what he has done. It also painfully evokes sympathy for the character. With no understanding of right and wrong he is a villain that cannot be held accountable for his actions. The relationship built between the two male stars is truly touching. As my first Almodovar film it has certainly given me a taste for more.

• Lanning :

  
  Get me out of here. There's a snake in my kitchen. <p> Outstanding movie! Ssabee's comments convinced me to put this in my queue a while ago. Glad it finally came through. <p> You know, I'm going to remember that line for a long, long time. I can use… More
  Get me out of here. There's a snake in my kitchen. <p> Outstanding movie! Ssabee's comments convinced me to put this in my queue a while ago. Glad it finally came through. <p> You know, I'm going to remember that line for a long, long time. I can use that line, down the line, I'm sure. Seriously, friends, I can think of at least ten situations I've been in where throwing love ON the track -- not OFF the track -- could have been promoted with a snake-in-the-kitchen line like that. Not to mention that someone's love life has been in a kind of a coma for way too long. <p>Ssabee uses the term "strange love." Ah, Europeans. I love them. It's actual real love -- actually -- in America : ) <p>So is Sweden a popular place for Spanish ex-pats? I couldn't tell if that was, maybe, an inside joke -- or totally serious. <p>This is a beautiful, beautiful TRUE and REAL love story Hey. I say, think Woody Allen. Think even <i>While You Were Sleeping.</i> Or not . . . <p> I recommend this to anyone who has an impulse to romance that is at least equal to -- if not beyond -- the run of the mill pale : )

• Lady D

  
  An original and unusual storyline and set of circumstances. There was one particular scene that was quite bizarre and I?m sure if you?ve seen it you will know immediately of which one I?m referring to, but the main plot is a much more serious and interesting story, which I felt made… More
  An original and unusual storyline and set of circumstances. There was one particular scene that was quite bizarre and I?m sure if you?ve seen it you will know immediately of which one I?m referring to, but the main plot is a much more serious and interesting story, which I felt made compelling viewing.

• Arash X

  
  One of those movies that I feel something is missing in it but I can't realize what

• Pierluigi P

  
  A very interesting story about loneliness and lack of communication among humans, treated with maturity and serenity. the acting, photography and soundtrack are splendid.

• Elvira B

  
  The first time I watched Talk to Her I fell asleep. We developed a hate relationship, that is until I decided to give it a second chance. This time I found out what I'd been missing (while i was asleep) and I loved it. Marco and Benigno are stuck in a hospital, each watching… More
  The first time I watched Talk to Her I fell asleep. We developed a hate relationship, that is until I decided to give it a second chance. This time I found out what I'd been missing (while i was asleep) and I loved it. Marco and Benigno are stuck in a hospital, each watching over a woman he loves. The women areLidia and Alicia , and they are both in a comma. Benigno is also a nurse in the hospital, and he advocates himself to caring for Alicia as if she was awake. Above all, he talks to her. Marco can hardly bear to touch Lidia. Marco and Benigno develop a very intimate friendship -unashamed, sincere, deeply understanding, like one could only dream of ever being able to find. They find solace in each other, and they share their hope for a miracle. One day Benigno finds a way to accomplish the miracle (I really didn't see it coming, it was marvelous, although bizarre) and their bond is put to the test. I don't know if Talk to Her is a film about intimacy, love, or friendship- I guess they can all be taken for the same thing. Talk to Her concerns different feelings, desires, people, connections. They go through the process of dying to wake another one up, and so on. I could almost say it's a whole conception of life. Almodovar is more versatile than he is given credit for: his films seem to be about neurotic women and transvestites, and they all seem to be heavy or confusing, but Talk to Her is light as air, not lightheaded, but llight, developed so brilliantly that I could never feel the weight of the drama, just the exhilarating emotionality of it all. Marco and Benigno live through the process of waking up and falling back into comma more intensely than just through their girlfriends. Parallelisms are drawn between that and all other aspects of their existence. All actors and actresses do amazing jobs, even if asleep. Geraldine Chaplin brings with her the fairy dust that she has so often sprinkled on Spanish cinema throughout the years, and Paz Vega and Fele Martinez become actors in a very fearless silent film that only Almodovar could have made work. Beautiful beautiful beautiful.

• Fernando Rafael Q

  
  i add to my list, one more reason to love Pedro Almodovar, and my wish to visit Spain grows more and more... this 2002 film which won an Oscar for best Original Script is a delightful and emotional film... makes you cry, makes you laugh, colorful like all Almodovar flicks, well… More
  i add to my list, one more reason to love Pedro Almodovar, and my wish to visit Spain grows more and more... this 2002 film which won an Oscar for best Original Script is a delightful and emotional film... makes you cry, makes you laugh, colorful like all Almodovar flicks, well written of course, with amazing performances by Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti and Rosario Flores. I loved the special appearances by some of Spain's (and Almodovar's) best actors: Fele Martinez, Chus Lampreave, Marisa Paredes, Cecilia Roth, Lola Dueñas, Paz Vega... a masterpiece by PEDRO

• Drew S

  
  Another great effort from Almodovar, Talk to Her is a far more chilling and morally dubious tale than the first film I'd seen of his, Volver. It places massive challenges upon itself and for the most part fulfills them. It is a deep, involving, complex movie. More later.

• Dean L

  
  Initially I was truly wondering where this film was going. It seemed to be moving in one direction and then off in another (and not tangents that were simply indicative of some of the refreshingly less linear plotlines of foreign films). Within 20 minutes...you'll get it. This is… More
  Initially I was truly wondering where this film was going. It seemed to be moving in one direction and then off in another (and not tangents that were simply indicative of some of the refreshingly less linear plotlines of foreign films). Within 20 minutes...you'll get it. This is an amazing movie that deals with dark obsessions, the dangers of love, and the perils of fantasy. It is a great character study and the acting is as fantastic as the writing. You will care about the central characters and find yourself transported into their heads...their way of thinking about things. This movie came highly recommended to me and in the beginning I could not see why...now I know.

• Michael S

  
  My Favorite Almodovar next to All About my Mother.

• Megan S

  
  i enjoyed it. as mentioned earlier, it is in that back and forth movie style that i enjoy. however, there was one scene in it that was straight out of "Shock Video" on HBO. (a la Jack goes up the beanstalk but runs into the giant's wife and she proceeds to use jack as a… More
  i enjoyed it. as mentioned earlier, it is in that back and forth movie style that i enjoy. however, there was one scene in it that was straight out of "Shock Video" on HBO. (a la Jack goes up the beanstalk but runs into the giant's wife and she proceeds to use jack as a dildo...yea). though you could tell that the scene was very fake. in fact it was a silent movie that one of the characters had seen and then described to another character. the movie had three people from sex and lucia in it. two with minor parts. one with a major part and he played one messed up guy. i liked the way the beginning and the end were connected. so i'd recommend seeing this one, but i wont be owning it.

• Nate Z

  
  [font=Arial][color=darkred]Before one can assess 'Talk to Her', the new Spanish import from famed writer/director Pedro Almodovar, one must come to grips with what they have seen. It?s not every film you see that has a giant vagina. Yes, you read correctly dear reader, a… More
  [font=Arial][color=darkred]Before one can assess 'Talk to Her', the new Spanish import from famed writer/director Pedro Almodovar, one must come to grips with what they have seen. It?s not every film you see that has a giant vagina. Yes, you read correctly dear reader, a gigantic yet scalable recreation of the most sensitive part of the female anatomy. Was there also a giant penis you might reasonably ask? No, but there was an incredible shrinking man that burrowed into the enormous vagina and lived the rest of his days with the labia and clitoris as his next-door neighbors.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]And what may be even more surreal is that all of this, thematically and metaphorically upon retrospect, makes absolute sense.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]So maybe this opening salacious salvo was a bit hyperbolic, but describing Almodovar?s unusual meditation on life, love and death can prove quite ponderous. To explain the story of 'Talk to Her' is to miss its complexity and richness. This is a film destined to spark conversation afterwards. The giant vagina guarantees it.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Almodovar?s colorful melodrama centers on two sets of relationships. Benigno (Javier Camara) is the most attentive boyfriend a woman could have. He talks to former ballerina Alicia (Leonor Watling), washes her hair and makes sure she gets plenty of exercise and attention. Oh yeah, Alicia has also been in a coma for four years. Benigno carries on like he was involved in a normal relationship, except the woman of his heart cannot return a single glance.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Marco (Dario Grandinetti) is recovering from a former relationship when he falls completely in love with Lydia (Rosario Flores), a female bullfighter. She is having trouble competing in a very male dominated "sport" (I don?t really consider stabbing animals a sport per se). At the start of a bullfight Lydia is horribly gored and dragged around the arena like a rag doll. The results leave Lydia lying in a coma with no hope of ever waking up.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]It is at the hospital where Marco meets Benigno, who is one of the most helpful nurses. He helps Marco overcome his grief over his fallen love. Benigno shows that unresponsiveness and death cannot deter a man?s love. The two men bond and become very close, however, dark clouds are on the horizon, as Benigno?s fantasy cannot last much longer.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Almodovar has routinely enjoyed tweaking the establishment, especially gender roles and religion (there?s a few tacky priest molestation jokes), but with 'Talk to Her' he attempts to forge serious drama through odd circumstances (ballerinas, bullfighters, giant vaginas, oh my!) and all without the use of irony. The result is a quietly affecting film that burrows its way inside you, much like the shrinking man burrows into ... well, you remember.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]The movie is darkly comic in its portrayal of Benigno?s delusional relationship, and yet 'Talk to Her' is also a celebration of love and friendship. The affection that is shown is perplexing but also transfixing with the ability to love someone who is mentally not even there. The film questions the compensations we make for love. Some people pretend that their mate is a different person and glaze over character flaws. Could it not be possible then that someone would compensate for an entire person?[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Almodovar has created a very female centric film despite our female leads spending the majority of their screen time lying perfectly still. 'Talk to Her' is an engrossing and intriguing character-driven story. It may start out like a sick joke but the layers of humanity Almodovar effortlessly injects into his story create the most bizarrely touching movie of 2002. And it does have the largest vagina you?ll likely see in your life. At least, I hope it?s the largest.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Nate's Grade: A[/color][/font]

Read all 20 featured audience ratings