Raúl is a cult filmmaker facing a creative crisis. When tragedy affects one of his closest collaborators, he finds himself drawing on the experience for his next film. As he writes, he imagines Elsa, another filmmaker working on a script whose life begins to echo his own. Gradually, their stories intertwine, blurring the boundaries between reality, fiction and memory. Pedro Almodóvar’s latest film is a sun-dappled exploration of life, art and the stories we choose to tell, and who has the right to tell them.

Reviews

‘Never mind separating the art from the artist, Bitter Christmas asks if it’s the artist themself that needs to respect boundaries, and at what cost. Unlike Raul, Almodovar has lost none of his ability to surprise and provoke.’
★★★★
Philip De Semlyen, Time Out

‘Bitter Christmas is Almodóvar at his most acerbic, unsparing and apparently confessional, exposing for all to see the ugly human costs of making art.’
★★★★
Raphael Abraham, The FT