PEARLS FROM A CONTROVERSIAL MASTER : "CARNE TREMULA"

Ok, confession time. I did not start viewing Mr. Almodovar’s works in an as prejudice-free a manner as I usually do. In fact, from the outset I was quite prepared to hate them. Why? Well, first and foremost I somehow got the impression that they were in fact mostly about sex. In fact, don’t ask me why, that they bordered on pornography. One thing has to be made clear of course, sex features greatly – and openly – in all of his works, but it is not as “seedy” – for lack of a better word – as I thought it would be. Far, far from it. It is there as a normal continuation of passion, it is well placed. And of course it isn’t the only “thing” in the story. And the films themselves are generally so good, so deeply emotional and just such good quality that it really doesn’t matter. I had previously watched two films by Almodovar. One was “All about my mother” – that one I liked – but the other one was Habla Con Ella which I distinctly disliked and I discarded the director’s entire body of work until “a later date”. Well, that date seems to have come and never before have I been more pleasantly surprised to be wrong… Well, how can one be when discovering one’s mistake opens up such wonderful worlds for one?
Victor is a young man in love. He has fallen in love with Elena, a young woman he has met (and, we learn made love to) in a nightclub. They make a date to meet again, Elena – who was completely drunk at the time – doesn’t even remember him, the “confusion” turns into a passionate argument, the neighbors call the police, a gun goes off wounding a police officer. Victor goes to jail, David, the wounded police officer (played by the ever excellent Javier Bardem)is left paralyzed from the waist down. However, the whole thing isn’t such a dismal tragedy as one may think, as Elena and David then fall in love and get married. Victor, in the meanwhile, gets out of jail and is not best pleased to hear how Elena’s story ended. Someone needs to pay for the six years of his life he lost… So starts the path to revenge… At least, that’s what the path starts out as. Where it will end however, is another story all together…
Carne Tremula – Live Flesh doesn’t exactly invoke feelings of “artistry” in one at the offset it is true. The name alone carries a sense of what to expect, the cover of the DVD or the poster of the film depending on where you’re viewing the film depicts naked bodies… And yet the film speaks of love, passion, obsession, jealousy all human emotions and the whole thing is done in a very human way, without “overdoing” anything. The story, full of curveballs and surprises as it may be is still believable. True, there are a few coincidences, and we all jump down the throats of coincidences don’t we, but really, even they are not out of place.
In this film, we see two things that a lot – if not all – Almodovar’s films seem to be about or at least contain on some level. First of all, as I said before, sex. Seasoned viewers will know that male nudity is to Almodovar what women’s feet are to Tarantino. And it is so tastefully done (and OK, the “subjects” are so well chosen =) ) that I really am not complaining. But the love-making scenes in Carne Tremula deserve to be mentioned if only for their sheer beauty. I mean, it is what it is, and it is passionate sex; however, Almodovar has also very successfully captured the sheer physical beauty of the act itself. And believe me although I appreciate a nude male body when I see one, I am not so easily impressed by sex scenes. Secondly, there is the matter of male obsession. Of course the parallelism between Atame and this film is as obvious as the nose on my face. But although they start out as looking similar, Ricky and Victor are two very different characters. While Ricky goes “straight for the jugular” as it were, Victor is more patient. He still loves Elena, resents her marriage and wants revenge enough to be able to work at it slowly, step by step. And Almodovar successfully keeps every step up his sleeve until the last minute, keeping us on edge right until the end… Leave your prejudices at the door and prepare for a rollercoaster of good art…