Pedro's Trans Skin

[Shana A]

Sunday, October 23, 2011
Pedro's Trans Skin
Posted by Gina at 9:44 AM

http://skipthemakeup.blogspot.com/2011/10/pedros-trans-skin.html

NOTE: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SOME MINIMAL SPOILERS.

"The Skin I Live In," is Pedro Admodovar's 18th film and, perhaps, his most talked about since "All About My Mother." It's a welcome switch from his recent, perhaps more sedate films featuring Penelope Cruz. "Volver" and "Broken Embraces" took a mainstream detour and eschewed some of the queer, gender-skewed and trans themes of his earlier work. This newest offering reminds me more of his 'second wave' of films like "Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!" "Kika" and "High Heels" which fixated on vivid obsessions, fetishistic fulfillment and vengeance. While he doesn't use any trans performers (such as Bibiana Fernandez or Antonia San Juan) he puts trans themes and medical procedures squarely in the center of the film.