Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar gained a cult following with off-beat films such as Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown and Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!. But with his internationally acclaimed All About My Mother and this year's Oscar-nominated Talk To Her, the colourful writer-director is one of the world's hottest properties – and seems to have left the "foreign film" label far behind.
As Almodovar's name takes its place alongside Martin Scorsese and Roman Polanski on the Oscar best director shortlist, his latest hit Talk To Her earned a slew of gongs at France's Cesar Awards and Britain's BAFTAs over the weekend. He received the French accolade for best film of the European Union, and took home the BAFTA for best non-English speaking film and the mainstream category best original screenplay.
The film also scooped five European Film Academy Awards late last year, including best picture, director, screenwriter and actor, for Javier Camara.
There is, however, at least one country which hasn't fallen under Talk To Her's spell – Almodovar's homeland of Spain. At the Goyas, the Spanish equivalent of the Oscars, the unusual tale of two comatose women and the men in their lives was nominated seven times, but scooped only one trophy, for best original music score.
The Goyas' big winner, Mondays In The Sun, was submitted for the Oscar best foreign film category, but was not nominated.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
