A new film from Pedro Almodóvar is always cause for celebration, and no wonder that his next effort, “The Skin That I Inhabit” is one our most anticipated films of the year. Helping to stoke that fire is the ambitious nature of the project, which promises to be one of the most intriguing outings yet for the director.
The film is a revenge picture based on crime novelist Theirry Jonque‘s 2005 book, “Tarantula,” about a plastic surgeon’s revenge on the man who raped his daughter. But really, that’s just scratching the surface. You can read the full synopsis of the book here, but in short, this is a film that has a loathsome protagonist who, while seeking justice for his daughter, keeps his wife imprisoned and subjects her to humiliating sexual acts with strangers. The first look at the film certainly bears out the creepier aspects of the story, with Antonio Banderas presiding over a bald headed Elena Anaya.
The film co-stars Marisa Paredes (Almodóvar’s “All About My Mother” and “The Flower of My Secret“), Jan Cornet, Roberto Alamo, Blanca Suárez, Eduard Fernández, José Luis Gómez (Almodóvar’s “Broken Embraces“), Bárbara Lennie, Susi Sánchez, Fernando Cayo and Teresa Manresa. Longtime collaborators such as composer Alberto Iglesias, DoP Jose Luis Alcaine and editor José Salcedo are once again in the mix.
The film shot last year throughout Spain on a tidy budget of 10 million Euros, and has already been picked up by Sony Pictures Classics who have long repped Almodóvar’s films. No release date yet, but don’t be surprised if it debuts at Cannes.
