All+About+My+Mother

(I couldn't put screenshots in because my Handbrake was acting all weird, so I made a note for myself with the times for the screenshots that I need to take, and I'll put them up as soon as possible!)

All About My Mother is a film by Pedro Almodovar, and it's about a mother called Manuela. Manuela and her son (Esteban) have a really great relationship, and you can see that they're really dependent upon each other, until her son dies in an accident for her. Manuela flees to Barcelona, to try to find Esteban's father and fix old problems that she's had, and try to sort out her life in the process. The theme of this film is that, especially after you lose someone dear to you, you still move on and it's possible to be happy. Even if you have huge problems/conflicts in your life, you have to remember to try to keep your mind open and to look on the bright side of things.  1. This shot relates back to the theme of the movie because this is the inciting incident of the whole conflict in the movie. Manuela's relationship with her son is so deep that, by wanting to get a simple autograph for her, he risks his whole life. [screenshot 12.30]

2. This shot shows the man who Esteban gave his heart to, after death. It shows Manuela trying to cope and accept the fact that Esteban’s really gone, and that she’s done a good thing by saving someone’s life in this way, even if she feels the complete opposite of happy right now. This shot shows a happy (and just reunited) family on the left, contrasting to Manuela, who doesn’t really have anyone left. [screenshot 17.33]

3. It’s insinuated that this is shot from the front of a train, as you just saw a scene of Manuela sitting in a one. This is symbolic because it shows Manuela’s progress right now - the tunnel doesn’t seem to actually have a light at the end for six long seconds, but the camera view is still extremely far away from the end. This might show how Manuela’s journey (moving on) has just started, and that she still has a long way to go til she gets what she needs.. [screenshot 20.07 and 20.14] At the very end of the movie, we see this same shot again, but this time, the shot shows that the train’s much closer to the light at the end of the tunnel, and that the train’s about to exit the tunnel. [screenshot 1.33.52]

4. Manuela’s looking at photos of all of Huma Rojo’s performances, admiring her. I feel as though it’s as if Manuela’s jealous of the image that Huma’s created for herself, showing her life as really stable. [screenshot 38.19] [screenshot 39.51]

5. Huma’s telling Manuela that she’s depending on Manuela now, she’s placing her trust in Manuela. This may be foreshadowing for the whole movie, about how Manuela’s journey is aided by mostly strangers. [screenshot 39.20]

6. I feel as though reflections/images are a constant symbol in this movie. Earlier, you saw Manuela looking at different pictures of Huma several times, and then you realize that Huma’s not really who she is in the pictures. This could be related to how Manuela looks at reflections/images of herself a lot (especially in mirrors) and how this shows how she’s still trying to find who she is, because what the mirror shows isn’t the whole truth. [screenshot 45.57] Also shown in this shot, later in the movie. [screenshot 1.18.46]

7. This shot shows that, adding to my point in #5 earlier, Manuela’s slowly becoming more relaxed and closer with these near strangers, and it’s foreshadowing that they’ll be there for each other during conflicts. [screenshot 1.04.45]

8. This shows the first time that Rosa’s mother has come to visit Rosa and find out that she’s not actually in El Salvador. You can see the contrast between Rosa and her mother. <range type="comment" id="408447096_9">Rosa’s mother has warm colors shown on her (e.g. brown), while Rosa has colder/paler colors shown on her (e.g. blue). This scene shows how, even though the main plotline of the movie follows Manuela’s journey, Manuela still manages to help everyone who comes across her.</range id="408447096_9"> [screenshot 1.13.35]

9. <range type="comment" id="408447096_10">Adding to my point in #8 just now, Manuela proves that Rosa would be in better care if she stays in Manuela’s flat, instead of back in her parents’ house.</range id="408447096_10"> [screenshot 1.15.26] [screenshot 1.15.28]

10. <range type="comment" id="408447096_11">At the end of the movie, two years after Manuela ran away again, she comes back to visit. Here, you can see how much their images change. For Huma, instead of putting her acting pictures up, she put pictures that have more meaning up (e.g. Esteban).</range id="408447096_11"> [screenshot 1.35.07]