Pedro Almodóvar's 'Parallel Mothers' Will Open The 2021 Venice Film Festival

Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar‘s latest film, “Parallel Mothers,” starring Penelope Cruz, Israel Elejalde, Julieta Serrano, and Rossy de Palma, will open up the 78th edition of the Venice Film Festival in September. “Parallel Mothers,” or “Madres Paralelas,” as it’s known in Spain, centers on the story of two mothers who give birth the same day. The film also stars Milena Smit, Israel Elejalde and Aitana Sánchez-Gijón.

“I was born as a film director in 1983 in Venice,” Almodóvar said in a statement. “In the Mezzogiorno Mezzanotte section. Thirty-eight years later, I am called to open the Festival. I cannot explain the joy and the honor and how much this means to me without falling into complacency. I am very grateful to the Festival for this recognition and hope to be up to it.”

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Here’s the official synopsis:

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Two women, Janis and Ana, coincide in a hospital room where they are going to give birth. Both are single and got pregnant by accident. Janis, middle-aged, doesn’t regret it, and she is exultant. The other, Ana, an adolescent, is scared, repentant, and traumatized. Janis tries to encourage her while they move like sleepwalkers along the hospital corridors. The few words they exchange in these hours will create a very close link between the two, which chance will undertake to develop and complicate in such a decisive way that it will change the lives of both.

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“Parallel Mothers” will be screened Wednesday, September 1st, in the Sala Grande at the Palazzo del Cinema (Lido di Venezia), on the opening night of the 78th Venice International Film Festival. “Parallel Mothers” is produced by El Deseo and will be distributed in Italy by Warner Bros. Pictures.

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Other films premiering in Venice will be Denis Villeneuve‘s “Dune,” Pablo Larrain‘s “Spencer” with Kristen Stewart, David Gordon Green‘s “Halloween Kills,” and Jane Campion‘s “Power Of The Dog,” which, in of itself, is a heavy-hitting line-up. Bong Joon Ho will serve as the Jury President this year, and other titles expected to appear at Venice include Andrew Dominik‘s “Blonde.” The 78th Venice International Film Festival runs September 1-11, 2021.