''All About My Mother'' () is a 1999

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film written and directed by

Pedro Almodóvar Pedro Almodóvar Caballero (; born 25 September 1949) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter and author. His films are distinguished by Melodrama (film genre), melodrama, irreverent humour, bold colour, glossy décor, quotations from popular c ...

, and starring

Cecilia Roth Cecilia Edith Rotenberg Gutkin (born 8 August 1956), known professionally as Cecilia Roth () is an Argentine actress. She is the winner of two Goya Awards and a European Film Award. She is known for being an " Almodóvar girl" and the "muse" ...

, Marisa Paredes, Candela Peña, Antonia San Juan, Penélope Cruz, Rosa Maria Sardà, and Fernando Fernán Gómez. The plot originates in Almodóvar's earlier film '' The Flower of My Secret'' (1995), which shows student doctors being trained in how to persuade grieving relatives to allow organs to be used for transplant, focusing on the mother of a teenager killed in a road accident. ''All About My Mother'' deals with issues such as

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent and consistent with the in ...

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

, and

existentialism Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...

. The film was a commercial and critical success internationally, winning the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Foreign Language Film in addition to the

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

for Best Foreign Language Film and the

BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...

for Best Film Not in the English Language and Best Direction (Almodóvar). The film also won six

Goya Awards The Goya Awards () are Spain's main national annual film awards. They are presented by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Spain. The first ceremony was held in 1987, a year after the founding of the Academy of Cinematographic Ar ...

including Best Film, Best Director (Almodóvar), Best Actress (Roth).

Plot

Manuela is an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

nurse who supervises donor organ transplants at Ramón y Cajal Hospital in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

. She is also a single mother to Esteban, a teenager who aspires to become a writer. On Esteban's 17th birthday, he is hit and killed by a car while chasing after his favorite actress Huma Rojo for her autograph following a performance of ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pe ...

'', where Huma portrays

Blanche DuBois Blanche DuBois (married name Grey) is a fictional character in Tennessee Williams' 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning play ''A Streetcar Named Desire''. The character was written for Tallulah Bankhead and made popular to later audiences with Elia Kaza ...

. Manuela allows her son's heart to be transplanted to a man in

A Coruña A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality in Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province ...

. After tracking down the recipient, she resigns from her job and travels to

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

in search of Esteban's other mother, Lola, a transgender woman whom Manuela had kept secret from her son, just as she had never told Lola about the boy. In Barcelona, Manuela reunites with her old friend Agrado, a warm and witty transgender

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

. She also befriends Huma as well as her co-star and lover Nina Cruz, who is a heroin addict; and young

HIV positive The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of th ...

nun Rosa, who works in a shelter for battered sex workers and is pregnant with Lola's child. Manuela's life becomes entwined with theirs as she cares for Rosa during her pregnancy, works as Huma's personal assistant, or takes the stage as an

understudy In theatre, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to ap ...

for Nina during one of her drug abuse crises. On her way to the hospital, Rosa asks the taxi to stop at a park where she spots her father's dog, Sapic, and then her own father, who suffers from Alzheimer's. He does not recognize Rosa and asks for her age and height, but Sapic recognizes her. Rosa dies giving birth to a healthy boy; at her funeral, Manuela finally reunites with Lola. Lola (formerly known as Esteban) is dying from

and talks about how she always wanted a son. Manuela tells her about their own son Esteban and his fatal accident. Manuela adopts Rosa's son, Esteban, caring for him at Rosa's parents' house. The father does not understand who Manuela is, and Rosa's mother introduces her as the new cook who is living there with her son. Manuela introduces Esteban, Rosa's son, to Lola and gives her a picture of their own Esteban. Rosa's mother spots them from the street and confronts Manuela about letting strangers see the baby. Manuela tells her that Lola is Esteban's other parent, but Rosa's mother is appalled and blames Lola for causing Rosa's death, and fears that she will contract HIV from the baby. Deciding that she cannot live at Rosa's house any longer, Manuela flees back to Madrid with Esteban, and writes a letter to Huma and Agrado, apologizing once again for not saying goodbye like she did years before. Two years later, Manuela returns to Barcelona with Esteban, who has remained healthy and AIDS-free. At an AIDS convention, she meets up with Huma and Agrado, who now run a stage show together, and tells them that she is returning to stay with Esteban's grandparents. When Manuela asks about Nina, Agrado reveals that Nina broke up with Huma, returned to her town, got married, and now has a son of her own.

Cast

as Manuela Echevarria * Marisa Paredes as Huma Rojo * Candela Peña as Nina Cruz * Antonia San Juan as Agrado * Penélope Cruz as Rosa * Rosa Maria Sardà as Rosa's mother * Fernando Fernán Gómez as Rosa's father * Eloy Azorín as Esteban Echevarria * Toni Cantó as Lola

Production

Almodóvar dedicated his film "To all actresses who have played actresses. To all women who act. To men who act and become women. To all the people who want to be mothers. To my mother". Almodóvar recreated the accident scene from

John Cassavetes John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...

' '' Opening Night'' (1977) as the epicenter of the dramatic conflict. The film was mainly shot on location in

. The soundtrack includes "Gorrión" and "Coral para mi pequeño y lejano pueblo", written by Dino Saluzzi and performed by Saluzzi, Marc Johnson, and José Saluzzi, and "Tajabone", written and performed by

Ismaël Lô Ismaël Lô (also Ismaël Lo; born 1956) is a Senegalese musician and actor. Life Lô was born in Dogondoutchi, Niger on 30 August 1956, to a Senegalese father from wolof ethnic group and a Nigerian mother. Shortly after Lo's birth the family ...

. The poster of the film was designed by Madrid illustrator Óscar Mariné. This poster was designed to epitomize the very image of beauty, simplicity, and femininity. The poster intentionally emphasizes red, white, and blue with black accent strokes and a pop of yellow.

Release

The

film premiere A premiere, also spelled première, (from , ) is the debut (first public presentation) of a work, i.e. play, film, dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic ...

d in Spain on 8 April 1999 and went into general theatrical release on 16 April. It was shown at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

, the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, the Auckland Film Festival, the

Austin Film Festival Austin Film Festival (AFF), founded in 1994, is an organization in Austin, Texas, that focuses on writers' creative contributions to film. Initially, AFF was called the Austin Heart of Film Screenwriters Conference and functioned to launch the c ...

, the

Thessaloniki International Film Festival The Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF) is a film festival held every November in Thessaloniki, Greece. It is organized by the Thessaloniki Film Festival under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Culture. It features internationa ...

, and the

New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center. Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, NYFF i ...

before going into

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in the United States. It eventually grossed €9,962,047 in Spain ($12,595,016), $8,344,738 in the US, and $59,609,091 in foreign markets for a worldwide box office total of $67,957,990.

Reception

Critical response

Janet Maslin of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' called it Almodóvar's "best film by far", noting he "presents this womanly

melodrama A melodrama is a Drama, dramatic work in which plot, typically sensationalized for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodrama is "an exaggerated version of drama". Melodramas typically concentrate on ...

with an empathy to recall

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor ( ; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer, producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO Pictures, RKO when David O. Selzn ...

's and an eye-dampening intensity to out-Sirk

Douglas Sirk Douglas Sirk (born Hans Detlef Sierck; 26 April 1897 – 14 January 1987) was a German film director best known for his work in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. However, he also directed comedies, westerns, and war f ...

". She added, "It's the crossover moment in the career of a born four-hankie storyteller of ever-increasing stature. Look out, Hollywood, here he comes".

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' observed, "You don't know where to position yourself while you're watching a film like ''All About My Mother'', and that's part of the appeal: Do you take it seriously, like the characters do, or do you notice the bright colors and flashy art decoration, the cheerful homages to

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...

and ''

All About Eve ''All About Eve'' is a 1950 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on the 1946 short story (and subsequent 1949 radio drama) "The Wisdom of E ...

'', and see it as a

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

? . . . Almodóvar's earlier films sometimes seemed to be manipulating the characters as an exercise. Here the plot does handstands in its eagerness to use coincidence, surprise, and melodrama. But the characters have a weight and reality, as if Almodóvar has finally taken pity on them – has seen that although their plights may seem ludicrous, they are real enough to hurt". Bob Graham of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'' said, "No one else makes movies like this Spanish director" and added, "In other hands, these characters might be candidates for confessions – and brawls – on ''

The Jerry Springer Show ''Jerry Springer'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Jerry Springer. The show ran for twenty-seven seasons from September 30, 1991, to July 26, 2018, in which it broadcast 3,891 episodes. It was taped at the NB ...

'', but here they are handled with utmost sympathy. None of these goings-on is presented as sordid or seedy. The presentation is as bright, glossy, and seductive as a fashion magazine . . . The tone of ''All About My Mother'' has the heart-on-the-sleeve emotions of soap opera, but it is completely sincere and by no means camp". Wesley Morris of the ''

San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and has been published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst and the flagship of the He ...

'' called the film "a romantically labyrinthine tribute that piles layers of inter-textual shout-outs to ''All About Eve'', Tennessee Williams,

Truman Capote Truman Garcia Capote ( ; born Truman Streckfus Persons; September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. Several of his short stories, novels, and plays have been praised as literary classics ...

Federico García Lorca Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936) was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27, a g ...

and

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

, and beautifully assesses the nature of facades . . . Almodóvar imbues his Harlequin-novel-meets- Marvel-comic-book melodramas with something more than a wink and a smile, and it is beguiling. His expressionism and his screenwriting have always had fun together, but now there is a kind of faith and spirituality that sexcapades like '' Law of Desire'' and ''

Kika Kika may refer to: People * Kika de la Garza (1927–2017), American politician * Kika Edgar (born 1985), Mexican actress and singer * Kika Karadi (born 1975), American contemporary artist * Kika Markham (born 1940), English actress * Kika M ...

'' only laughed at... it contains a host of superlative firsts: a handful of the only truly moving scenes he has filmed, the most gorgeous dialogue he has composed, his most dimensional performances of his most dimensional characters and perhaps his most dynamic photography and elaborate production design". Jonathan Holland of '' Variety'' called the film "emotionally satisfying and brilliantly played" and commented, "The emotional tone is predominantly dark and confrontational . . . But thanks to a sweetly paced and genuinely witty script, pic doesn't become depressing as it focuses on the characters' stoic resilience and good humor". In 2018 the film was ranked 32nd in BBC's list of The 100 greatest foreign language films.

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

ranked the film at No. 69 on its list of "90 great films of 1990s".

Awards and nominations

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

* Best Foreign Language Film (won)

* Best Film Not in the English Language (won) * Best Direction (Almodóvar, won) * Best Screenplay – Original (Almodóvar, nominated – lost to ''Being John Malkovich'', Charlie Kaufman)

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual Awards ceremony, award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally ...

* Best Foreign Language Film (won)

* Best Actress (Roth, won) * Best Cinematography (nominated – lost to ''Goya in Bordeaux'') * Best Costume Design (nominated – lost to ''Goya in Bordeaux'') * Best Director (Almodóvar, won) * Best Editing (won) * Best Film (won) * Best Makeup and Hairstyles (nominated – lost to ''Goya in Bordeaux'') * Best Original Score (Iglesias, won) * Best Production Design (nominated – lost to ''Goya in Bordeaux'') * Best Sound (won) * Best Supporting Actress (Peña, nominee – María Galiana, ''Alone'') * Best Screenplay – Original (Almodóvar, nominee – lost to ''Alone'', Benito Zambrano) ;Other awards * Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Foreign Language Film (winner) * British Independent Film Award for Best Foreign Language Film (winner) * Butaca Award for Best Catalan Film Actress (Candela Peña, winner) * Cannes Film Festival Best Director Award (winner) * Cannes Film Festival Prize of the Ecumenical Jury (Pedro Almodóvar, winner) * Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Foreign Language Film (winner) * César Award for Best Foreign Film (winner) * David di Donatello for Best Foreign Film (winner) * Jameson People's Choice Award for Best European Director (winner) * European Film Award for Best European Film (winner) * European Film Award for Best European Actress (Cecilia Roth, winner) *

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is a US accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding portrayals of LGBTQ people and the issues that affect their lives. In addition to film and television, the Awards ...

for Outstanding Film in Limited Release (nominee) * Independent Spirit Award for Best Foreign Language Film (nominee) * London Film Critics Circle Award for Foreign Language Film of the Year (winner) *

Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Foreign Language Film is an award given annually by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. It was first introduced in 1975 to reward an outstanding film not in the English language ...

(winner) * Lumière Award for Best Foreign Film (winner) *

National Board of Review Award for Best Foreign Language Film The National Board of Review Award for Best International Film (formerly known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2022) is one of the annual awards given (since 1934) by the National Board of Review, National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. ...

(winner) *

New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Language Film New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

(winner) * Premios ACE Award for Best Film (winner) * Premios ACE Award for Best Actress – Cinema (Cecilia Roth, winner) * Premios ACE Award for Best Supporting Actor – Cinema (Fernando Fernán Gómez, winner) * Premios ACE Award for Best Supporting Actress – Cinema (Marisa Paredes, winner) * Satellite Award for Best Foreign Language Film (winner; tied with '' Three Seasons'')

Stage adaptation

A stage adaptation of the film by playwright Samuel Adamson received its world première at the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

in London's West End on 4 September 2007. This production marked the first English language adaptation of any of Almodóvar's works and had his support and approval. Music by the film's composer, Alberto Iglesias, was incorporated into the stage production, with additional music by Max and Ben Ringham. It starred

Colin Morgan Colin Morgan (born 1 January 1986) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He is known for playing the title character in the BBC fantasy series ''Merlin'' (2008–2012), Leo Elster in ''Humans'' (2015–2018), and Billy Clanton in Kenneth Branagh' ...

Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 1938 – 10 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Tracy Bond, Teresa di ...

, Lesley Manville,

Mark Gatiss Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...

, Joanne Froggatt, and Charlotte Randle. It opened to generally good reviews, with some critics stating it improved upon the film.

References

External links

* * * * *
''All About My Mother: Matriarchal Society''
– an essay by Emma Wilson at

The Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home video, home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films". A "sister company" of art film, arth ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:All About My Mother 1999 films 1999 comedy-drama films 1999 independent films 1999 LGBTQ-related films 1990s Catalan-language films 1990s English-language films 1990s feminist films 1990s French films 1990s LGBTQ-related drama films 1990s Spanish films 1990s Spanish-language films BAFTA winners (films) Best Film Goya Award winners Best Foreign Film César Award winners Best Foreign Film Guldbagge Award winners Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award winners Best Foreign Language Film BAFTA Award winners Best Foreign Language Film Golden Globe winners El Deseo films English-language comedy-drama films English-language French films English-language independent films English-language Spanish films European Film Awards winners (films) Films about actors Films about gender Films about mother–son relationships Films about trans women Films about writers Films adapted into plays Films directed by Pedro Almodóvar Films produced by Agustín Almodóvar Films scored by Alberto Iglesias Films set in Barcelona Films set in Madrid Films shot in Barcelona Films shot in Madrid Films whose director won the Best Direction BAFTA Award France 2 Cinéma films French comedy-drama films French feminist films French independent films French LGBTQ-related films HIV/AIDS in French films Lesbian-related films LGBTQ-related comedy-drama films Pathé films Satellite Award–winning films Spanish comedy-drama films Spanish independent films Spanish LGBTQ-related films Spanish-language comedy-drama films Spanish-language French films Sony Pictures Classics films