Talk to Her (2002)

The critic praises the film's ability to evoke complex emotions from improbable melodrama and kinky themes through the devoted, obsessive care two men give to comatose women. He singles out the director's skill in blending soap-opera elements with tragedy and a standout silent-film fantasy sequence for particular admiration.

The film grows from an apparently insubstantial confection into Almodóvar's most mature and rewarding work alongside All About My Mother. It combines profound emotion, ethical inquiry, high art and bodily gags while exploring love, loss, loneliness and the need for honest communication.

Almodóvar has traded pop punch for a minor key in his later work, finding new dramatic possibilities. The film excels in its gentle rhymes between tragedy and happiness, carried by strong male performances especially Javier Cámara.

The critic finds the film a tender, psychologically probing exploration of male adoration and romantic obsession centered on two men caring for comatose women. He singles out the smooth, melancholy imagery, the framing Pina Bausch dance sequences, and the director's newfound calm and emotional generosity for praise.

Almodóvar returns to his roots with a modest, serious and well-rounded straight drama that maintains freshness and originality. It mixes gender roles and features strong performances, memorable imagery and a universal subject matter that could attract wider audiences.

Though weighed down by its jazzy-theatrical formalism, the film pushes a uniquely soulful blend of comedy and drama. It evocatively suggests the need for spiritual invention and rebirth of body and spirit through Almodóvar's gliding camera and character dynamics.

Almodóvar's film is calmer and less extravagant than his previous work but retains his unmistakable signature of theatricality and suspense. It explores two men's relationships with women in comas with imaginative warmth that neutralises potentially horrific elements through sympathy and stylisation.

The critic declares it Almodóvar on top form with a personal film exploring story-telling, loneliness, friendship and communication. The review singles out the master-stroke of the saucy silent film-within-the-film called Shrinking Lover for its black humour and clever purpose.

The critic hails Almodóvar as having come of age, with a human, recognisably life-like film that is quiet in tone, ravishingly cool in looks and superbly controlled in rhythm. The review singles out the eloquent use of the body in dance, physiotherapy and ritual as well as the surprising, extravagant stylistic elements like the silent film-within-the-film.

The film is a postmodern melodrama that explores Almodóvar's signature themes with maturity. It highlights the director's evolving style in blending emotional depth with his established motifs.

The critic calls it Almodóvar's latest and perhaps greatest film, a romantic drama surpassing even All About My Mother in psychological intricacy and perverse comedy. The review singles out the film's profound inquiry into the secret hearts of modern urban loners and the mesmerising performances by Javier Cámara and Darío Grandinetti.

The critic calls it a captivating Oscar-winning masterpiece that explores male loneliness through an unlikely friendship tested by disturbing violence. The film is praised for its visual style and script but noted for sinking into darkness with a heavy tragic tone.

The critic finds the film absorbing rather than depressing and uplifting rather than sad. They single out the perfectly judged performances of the two male leads as they form an unexpected friendship while caring for women in comas.