Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
After being estranged for 15 years, flamboyant actress Becky del Paramo re-enters her daughter Rebeca's life when she comes to perform a concert. Rebeca, she finds, is now married to one of Becky's ex-lovers, Manuel. The mother and daughter begin making up for lost time, when suddenly, a murder occurs...
Almodóvar's High Heels is a characteristically bold melodrama blending operatic mother-daughter dynamics with murder mystery and drag performance. The acting is exceptional, particularly Victoria Abril and Marisa Paredes, who bring raw emotional intensity to their complex relationship. Novelty is high — Almodóvar's singular voice, his fusion of telenovela excess with genuine pathos and queer subversion (the judge-as-drag-performer conceit), makes this unmistakably his own creation. The plot, while inventive in conception, occasionally loses momentum juggling its tonal shifts between comedy, crime, and melodrama. The cinematography is competent and colorful but not among his most visually daring work. The ending, while emotionally resonant, leans into melodramatic sentiment in ways that feel slightly over-signaled rather than earned through subtlety.