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| Scene from Pain and Glory |
Over the course of a career, the best of artists will have expressed themselves on levels so personal that it's hard to think that there's anything left to cover. For Pedro Almodovar's Pain and Gain, the struggles of Salvador Mallo (Antonio Banderas) feel like they've only readjusted themselves following a career of international acclaim. Are his best days behind him, or is he bound to turn his latest project into the next big masterpiece? Following the reappraisal of a 30-year-old film, Salvador has a chance to look back on his life, especially in relation to his collaborators and youth, going on a mission to find where meaning comes from at a time when he's worn, his body falling apart on him as he does everything to maintain his vibrancy. As far as dramas looking back on a life well-lived, Almodovar has made one of the most beautiful and touching tales, finding the intricate balance between inspiration and human flaw. By the end, truth and reality have mixed so ambiguously that one has to wonder if life imitates art, or if art gives reason to live. Maybe it's both and we just don't realize it.
