In the 25 years since Law
of Desire Almodóvar has refined his filmmaking and writing styles to the
point of near perfection. Looking at this older film you almost have to ignore
the occasional stilted dialogue and acting and focus instead on his themes,
which were as rich and fulfilling then as they are now.
Almodóvar has always been fond of setting films with
films or plays within films and Law of
Desire is not different, featuring both. He’s also always pushed the
boundaries of acceptability in filmmaking and here he opens with a sexually
explicit scene that, it turns out, is being directed by Pablo Quintero (Eusebio
Poncela) as part of a film that will make him even more of a celebrity. Pablo
has a fairly strong habit of engaging in both drugs and promiscuous sex with
young men he meets while out in his hometown of Madrid. His regular lover Juan
goes away on an extended holiday leaving open the opportunity for Antonio
(Antonio Baderas) to take his place and become jealous to the point of making
some very poor decisions.
