I’m just resigned to the fact that I just don’t understand Pedro Almodovar’s work as a whole. He always manages to make beautiful-looking films with amazing performances… but more than half of the time his characters don’t have any arcs, and his stories feel glacially slow. I defy anybody to watch this film and tell me that these characters change in any way whatsoever throughout the course of the film.
I try really hard with Almodovar flicks. I really do. But outside of PAIN AND GLORY, TALK TO HER, THE SKIN I LIVE IN, and PARALLEL MOTHERS, his films kind of seem to be really esoteric, narratively dull, melodramatic films that are only technically done very well. This is one of those films.
THE ROOM NEXT DOOR opens in limited theaters on December 20, 2024, and expands to additional theaters in January 2025.
Editor’s Note: This review is part of a collection of reviews by Eli Brumfield after attending the 2024 AFI Fest in Los Angeles. Check out the rest of his reviews from the film festival here: AFI FEST 2024 (A RUNDOWN…)
