Synopsis
Internationally acclaimed writer/director Pedro Almodóvar (Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!) delivers his finest film yet, a poignant masterpiece of unconditional love, survival and redemption. Manuela (Cecilia Roth) is the perfect mother. A hard-working nurse, shes built a comfortable life for herself and her teenage son, an aspiring writer. But when tragedy strikes and her beloved only child is killed in a car accident, her world crumbles. The heartbroken woman learns her sons final wish was to know of his father-the man she abandoned when she was pregnant 18 years earlier. Returning to Barcelona in search of him, Manuela overcomes her grief and becomes caregiver to a colorful extended family: a pregnant nun (Penélope Cruz), a transvestite prostitute (Antonia San Juan), and two troubled actresses (Maria Paredes and Candela Peña). With riveting performances, unforgettable characters and creative plot twists, this touching screwball melodrama is "An absolute stunner. A funny, touching and vital film marks a career peak for Almodovar!" (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone).