Julieta is Pedro Almodóvar’s 20th motion picture film. It stars Emma Suárez, Adriana Ugarte, Daniel Grao, Inma Cuesta, Darío Grandinetti, Priscilla Delgado, and Michelle Jenner. Celebrating director Almodóvar’s 75th birthday (also Michelle Husson’s) we present to you “Julieta.” When a daughter disappears, how does a mother cope with the pain?
A young Julieta (Ugarte), has found the perfect job as a substitute teacher in Madrid, Spain. One night, on a train, she meets Xoan (Grao), who gains his income as a fisherman.
Before the World Wide Web, communication was done via letters. Upon receiving a handwritten letter from Xoan, they resume their new bond.
Not long after, they become pregnant and welcome their daughter, whom they name Antía (Delgado). As the years pass by, Antía becomes an active teenager who likes sports such as basketball and enjoys the adventure of summer camps.
Unfortunately, relationships can deteriorate. And that is what happens to Julieta and Xoan once he begins an affair with a mutual friend of theirs named Ava (Cuesta).
On one occasion, a brave Julieta confronts him. Angrily, Xoan decides to go boating despite the awful weather. Sadly, that becomes his last fishing trip.
While away at summer camp, Antía befriends Beatriz (Jenner). A girl just like her, and thus they become inseparable. However, at such a young age, Julieta breaks the news of her father’s passing.
On her 18th birthday, Antía leaves for a retreat, leaving no trace behind. But why would she cut ties with her elderly mother (Suárez)? Before the internet, how do you search for your daughter?
That is what both movies, “Julieta” and “Searching” aim to explore with the key differences in the technological eras.
“Julieta” is based on the book Runaway by writer Alice Munro (2004). Instead of relying on make-up, director Almodóvar cast two actresses to play a young and elderly Julieta, which portrays realness on the screen.
From his 8mm shooting days to founding his own production company called “El Deseo” to releasing twisted films such as “La Piel Que Habito,” Pedro Almodóvar has come a long way to be considered one of the best Spanish film directors.
Watch the trailer of Pedro Almodóvar’s “Julieta” film.
- “Julieta” movie stills. Directed by Pedro Almodóvar (El Deseo, WB. Spain, 2016). ↩︎
