The Skin I Live In details
| Formats: | 15 DVD, Blu-ray |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya |
| Directors: | Pedro Almodóvar, Pedro Almodovar |
| Genres: | Drama, Thriller - General, World Cinema - Japanese |
| Studio: | 20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Original title | La piel que habito |
| Collections: | Unmissable World Cinema |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
The Skin I Live In |
15 Feature |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 2 hours |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | 23 Jan 2012 |
| Main languages: | Spanish |
| Subtitles: | English |
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LOVEFiLM Review
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By Jonathan Crocker from LOVEFiLMPedro Almodóvar's latest is dark and witty and full of secrets, but we're giving nothing away...
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Most helpful review
'The Skin I Live In' will tease and entertain you through to the perverse end.
By Tarumatu (39 reviews) from Brighton, England , 27 Aug 2011[Highly rated reviewer]
Antonio Banderas is reunited with Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, who made him famous in his early films such as the hilarious 'Time Me Up, Time Me Down'. Banderas plays Robert Ledgard, a highely regarded but controversial cosmetic surgeon. Ledgard lives with his housekeeper Marilia (Marisa Paredes), and the mysterious Vera (Elena Anaya) who seems to be imprisoned, spending her days dressed in a skin-tone bodysuit.
Almodovar keeps you guessing right from the beginning, and Vera is the most intriguing, is she Ledgards patient, perhaps his daughter or even his wife? An intruder initiates a change in Ledgard and Vera's relationship. The story unfolds through numerous flashbacks involving Ledgard's daughter and Vicente, who both met at a party, establishing the nature of Ledgards actions to come.
Ledgard is haunted by his wife's severe burns following a car accident, he becomes obsessed with healing her, working day and night on skin tissue experiments. Ledgards obsession pushes him to experiment with ‘transgenesis’ – an illegal form of genetic engineering on humans.
Not only does the plot keep you guessing but you keep asking yourself 'is this a horror movie, a revenge thriller, a dark comedy or a suspense thriller?'. In fact it's all of these and much more.
The incredibly beautiful Anaya is a fantastic foil to Banderas, growing in her role and gaining greater significance and complexity as the film unravels, and it is she as Vera who defines the film. Banderas is a charismatic lead, every inch the Spanish Cary Grant, stylish and charming, but with an unnerving menace. You can even empathise with Banderas' humanistic portrayal of Ledgard, traumatised by his pain and loss. You do, until <em>that</em> moment!
Staple Almodovar themes of identity, flesh, sex and power are all present, but it's the quite ridiculous twist which completes this film. You soon realise this cruel joke has depth, and very real implications, not least the premise of the act of male aggression and penetration, sexual or otherwise.
There are several cinematic references and homages throughout this film but Almodovar still manages to make 'The Skin I Live In' all his own, this absurdly twisted psychological horror could not have been directed by anyone other than Almodovar.
Almodovar's films are renowned for their twists and absurdities, plus a healthy dollop of comedy and kitsch, but nothing as sinister and altogether bonkers as 'The Skin I Live In'. The brilliance of Almodovar is his ability to normalise the odd and the absurd, 'The Skin I Live In' will tease and entertain you through to the perverse end.- Was this review helpful to you?
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All reviews
(156)Twisted and fantastic!
By Nike1985 (18 reviews) , 25 Apr 2013I watched the trailer for this film, which seemed a bit all over the place so I still didn't really have a clue what the film was going to be about but I like foreign films so thought I would give it a whirl. Plus the other reviewers comments had me very intrigued! You really need to rent this film! Its not like any other film I have seen and the twist is absolutely fantastic- I certainly didn't put all the pieces together! Don't get me wrong- like a lot of the other reviewers have said, it was really weird! But the film was so well done that it was wonderfully weird and only left me wishing I'd watched it with someone so that I had someone to talk to about it after!- Was this review helpful to you?
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Superb fim
By Parsifalangel (12 reviews) , 10 Mar 2013Superbly acted and shot with a fabulous way of segmenting the story leading to reveal after reveal, this is a magnificent film. Without a doubt I shall be exploring more of Almodovar's films!- Was this review helpful to you?
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A suprising film
By gibbetson (20 reviews) , 03 Mar 2013Wow what can I say about this film, if you don't mind subtitles then this film is great. Whilst watching this film I really did not know how it will end, and what an ending it is. Not going to say much else about the film, but watch it its so good and clever- Was this review helpful to you?
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Not awful
By Faerie30 (26 reviews) , 13 Feb 2013The story is better that the film, a few pointless moments and the twists were inconsequential, overall a bit disappointing- Was this review helpful to you?
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wtf? omg
By peterthegreat (8 reviews) , 04 Feb 2013Hilarious film - but what the hell is it about? Nice comedy touches, yet the theme escapes me. The genre seems to include a lot of good-looking actors, without a great deal of psychological depth in the acting, yet pretentions thereto in the script.- Was this review helpful to you?
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