{"id":1053,"date":"2016-08-24T14:16:44","date_gmt":"2016-08-24T13:16:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/medical-humanities\/?p=1053"},"modified":"2020-08-06T12:09:39","modified_gmt":"2020-08-06T11:09:39","slug":"film-review-julieta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/medical-humanities\/2016\/08\/24\/film-review-julieta\/","title":{"rendered":"Film review: Julieta"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

Julieta, Spain, 2016, directed by Pedro Almodovar<\/strong><\/p>\n

In UK cinemas from 26th August 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Reviewed by Dr Franco Ferrarini, Gastroenterologist with a special interest in functional gastrointestinal disorders and their treatment with hypnosis<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The opening shot of Pedro Almodovar\u2019s \u2018Julieta\u2019 shows a pulsating red cloth that looks like a curtain; as the camera slowly pulls back, we realize that it is actually a lady\u2019s dress. From the\u00a0outset,\u00a0we know that we are about to enter one of Almodovar\u2019s favourite arenas, namely the \u2018women\u2019s world\u2019. However, \u2018Julieta\u2019 is definitely less \u201cAlmo-dramatic\u201d than his previous films; it plays as a mystery tale, but there are no victims, no villains and no murder investigation. Nor do we get the usual humour, the defiance and the provocative style that usually\u00a0permeate Almodovar\u2019s films.<\/p>\n

Julieta (Emma Suarez), is a good-looking, well-off woman in her mid-fifties, who is happily planning a vacation with her lover Lorenzo (Dario Grandinetti). Accidentally she runs into Beatriz (Michelle Jenner) who tells Julieta of a recent encounter with Ania, Julieta\u2019s estranged daughter (Imena Solano, Priscilla Delgado and Blanca Par\u00e9s, at different ages). Julieta abandons her planned journey, and starts writing a diary conceived as a letter to her daughter Ania. Using a series of detailed flashbacks, Almodovar narrates Julieta\u2019s earlier life, starting with her as a 20 year old woman falling in love with Xoan (Daniel Grao) while on a train journey. The two lovers get married soon after their first encounter, and Julieta gives birth to Ania. After Xoan\u2019s death, Ania mysteriously disappears at the age of 18. Repeated attempts by Julieta to get in touch with Ania end in vain. Using a sequence of emotional scenes, Julieta\u2019s feelings of guilt and bewilderment over Anias\u2019 disappearance are poignantly portrayed. Julieta\u2019s torment is masterfully underlined by Lucian Freud’s self-portrait (1985) hanging on a wall in her house, acting as a metaphor for most of Freud’s paintings, the continuous suffering of everyday life.<\/p>\n

\u2018I sometimes have the impression that reality is simply there to provide material for my next film\u2019, Almodovar famously stated. Using imaginative plotting in his films, he underlines the ominous consequences of the unsaid on human lives; the original title of \u2018Julieta\u2019 was \u2018Silencio\u2019 Spanish for \u2018Silence\u2019. A tragic mis-communication between Julieta and Ania, orchestrated by Xoan\u2019s housekeeper, explains Ania\u2019s disppearance, in a plot twist reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock\u2019s \u2018Rebecca\u2019 https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Rebecca_(1940_film)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The role of nature and fate in dictating the tragic life course of some human beings saturate the film. Nature, specifically sea water, bestows both survival means and death (Xoan is a fisherman who dies in his ship during a storm). Fate is at play in the train trip of young Julieta where she met Xoan for the first time: she had just rejected the advances of a depressed passenger (Tomas del Estal), who commits suicide fas a result. We are all at the mercy of fate, with significant consequences stemming from the apparently insignificant choices that we make. But even if we do not make those seemingly trivial choices, fate can cruelly hit, for example with a neurodegenerative illness,\u00a0such as\u00a0multiple sclerosis that affects Ava (Inma Cuesta), Xoan’s lover, forcing her to give up a career as a sculptor.<\/p>\n

Cognitive loss, as in coma and to a lesser degree in dementia, is also explored: Xoan\u2019s wife has been in a vegetative state for years, and Julieta\u2019s mother Sara (Susi Sanchez) is affected by dementia. Both Xoan and Julieta\u2019s father (Joaquin Notario) react similarly to their wives\u2019 cognitive loss by looking for other women.<\/p>\n

A subtle message is appreciated when Julieta visits her bedridden mother who has dementia; talking to her, combing her hair, and helping her get dressed is followed by clear improvement in the mother\u2019s wellbeing.<\/p>\n

Almodovar\u2019s hard core enthusiasts may be disappointed as \u2018Julieta\u2019 is very different from his previous films. Nevertheless, it can be appreciated as Almodovar’s cinematic development into a\u00a0more reflective and mature look on life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Address for correspondence: francoferrarini.ff@gmail.com\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Julieta, Spain, 2016, directed by Pedro Almodovar In UK cinemas from 26th August 2016   Reviewed by Dr Franco Ferrarini, Gastroenterologist with a special interest in functional gastrointestinal disorders and their treatment with hypnosis   The opening shot of Pedro Almodovar\u2019s \u2018Julieta\u2019 shows a pulsating red cloth that looks like a curtain; as the […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":263,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[206],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-film"],"yoast_head":"\nFilm review: Julieta - Medical Humanities<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/medical-humanities\/2016\/08\/24\/film-review-julieta\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Film review: Julieta - Medical Humanities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"  Julieta, Spain, 2016, directed by Pedro Almodovar In UK cinemas from 26th August 2016   Reviewed by Dr Franco Ferrarini, Gastroenterologist with a special interest in functional gastrointestinal disorders and their treatment with hypnosis   The opening shot of Pedro Almodovar\u2019s \u2018Julieta\u2019 shows a pulsating red cloth that looks like a curtain; as the [...]Read More...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.bmj.com\/medical-humanities\/2016\/08\/24\/film-review-julieta\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Medical Humanities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-08-24T13:16:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-08-06T11:09:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"Film review: Julieta\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-24T13:16:44+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-08-06T11:09:39+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":694,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Film and Media\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.bmj.com\\\/medical-humanities\\\/2016\\\/08\\\/24\\\/film-review-julieta\\\/\",\"name\":\"Film review: Julieta - 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