Speaking another language can be a bit scary, especially in front of thousands of expectant people. However, at the same time, Pedro Almodóvar will premiere his first feature film in English almost within the four walls of his home. Because the Venice Film Festival, which will host the world debut of Next roomhas become almost another home for the filmmaker. There he revealed Parallel mothers and the medium-length film The human voiceprecisely his first foray outside of Castilian. He also received, in 2019, a Golden Lion for his career. Now he hopes to add another, the one obtained by the winner of the official competition of La Mostra, which will be held from August 28 to September 7. Among his most famous rivals, announced today Tuesday, will be Joker: Madness for Two, sequel to the film starring Joaquin Phoenix that was a hit at the Lido in 2019; Queer, the length that Luca Guadagnino always wanted and was finally able to make; or Maria, biopic by Callas with Angelina Jolie in the role of the diva, directed by Pablo Larraín.
In 2021, Parallel mothers won the Volpi Cup for best actress for Penélope Cruz, and continued Almodóvar’s endless cinematic exploration of motherhood. Next room promises to add another chapter, through resentments, misunderstandings, pain, love and a cast with Tilda Swinton, in the skin of a war reporter, Julianne Moore, who plays a friend, John Turturro, Juan Diego Botto, Vicky Luengo and Raúl Arévalo, among others. “The film speaks of the limitless cruelty of wars, of the very different ways in which the two writers approach and write about reality, it speaks of death, friendship and sexual pleasure as the best allies to fight against horror. And it also speaks of the sweet awakening with the trills of birds, in a house built in the middle of a nature reserve in New England,” wrote Almodóvar. The film will hit theaters on October 18.
There will be more Spanish cinema at the Lido. In the Horizontes section, Marcothe new film by the Moriarti brothers (Jon Garaño, Aitor Arregi and José Mari Goenaga), aims to continue the path that has given them so much satisfaction with Flowers, Great y The endless trench. To this end, they will bring to the screen the life of Enric Marco, former general secretary of the CNT who for years maintained the fiction that he had been imprisoned in the Flossenbürg concentration camp. His controversial figure was also the focus of the novel. The impostor, by Javier Cercas, as recalled by the artistic director of the festival, Alberto Barbera, during the presentation. He also highlighted the performance of Eduard Fernández in the feature film.
Barbera also defined Rodrigo Sorogoyen as “perhaps the most important Spanish director of the moment, after Almodóvar”. And that is why he has once again selected a work by the filmmaker. A series, in this case, and out of competition: New Years follows “the relationship between a man and a woman over the course of 10 consecutive years in the days around New Year’s Eve,” in the words of the director of La Mostra. In addition, the film Sugar Islandby the Dominican Johanné Gómez Terrero, with part of the Spanish production, will be seen in the section Giornate degli autori, and the documentary Portabella Constellationabout the famous director, will be at Venezia Classici. The festival thus continues its renewed passion for Spanish cinema. It has long been a feature in the various sections of the event, with films such as Late for anger, Especially at night, Zumiriki, Mother, On the margins or, last year, The Snow Society.
Beetlejuice BeetlejuiceTim Burton’s The Golden Lion, starring Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Monica Bellucci and Willem Dafoe, will open the festival out of competition. Australian director Peter Weir will collect the Honorary Golden Lion, just before the screening of one of his most beloved films, Master and Commander.