Jon McMahon (jonrmcmahon)

Call me crazy but I can't recommend a film on the basis of seeing Penelope Cruz's bare chest. Unfortunately, that image is probably the most interesting part of 'Los abrazos rotos,' as we find Almodóvar returning to the middling melodramatic territory of 'La mala educación.' Any real feelings the characters might have are smothered by unimaginative direction and cheap stabs at the heart. The absence of any suspense or even surprise is truly disappointing in a work from such a capable filmmaker. Perhaps this is the trouble with a director having a muse: he can fall so in love with her charms he forgets to actually tell a story or even attempt to keep an audience engaged. Their chemistry was fresh and sensual in 'Volver.' Here it falls tortilla flat. By comparison,Lola Dueñas is brilliant in her cameo as a lip reader.

I can respect the (arguably) first film to tell a story (someone had to do it), but I don't have to think it's a good story, or that it's well told. The complete primitive product is mighty labored, taking 12 minutes to tell a three minute story without bothering to add anything juicy. I can't relate to the excitement of audiences who saw this picture back in 1903, when it was fresh, so it's unfair for me to judge its merits based on anything but how it compares to the decades of cinema that followed. I thank my lucky stars it got better than this.

Cassavetes's most complete human masterpiece.

One of a kind legendary road picture. Unforgettable.