Almodovar's_Visual_Style_Has_Been_Described_as_Excessive_and_Cluttered

Almodóvar’s visual style has been described as ‘excessive’ and sometimes ‘cluttered’. Consider these descriptions in respect of the mise-en-scène of “Todo Sobre Mi Madre”, both showing why they may be appropriate and considering the use that Almodóvar makes of his excess. It is not very difficult to see why some people may find Almodóvar’s work to be excessive and even cluttered. While at times during “Todo Sobre Mi Madre” this does not seem to be the case, there is almost certainly always some over the top aspect to each scene. Ordinarily the mise-en-scène of any film is going to need to be very accurate. However Almodóvar takes this a step further. All we have to do is select scenes at random from “Todo Sobre Mi Madre” and we can quite clearly see the excessive attention paid to detail in some of his shots. The scene which I find to be the most cluttered in terms of background detail is one which is set in Huma’s dressing room. The attention paid to the choice and positioning of the photographs is quite significant as the images both portray events which have occurred during previous parts of the film and also show other unknown characters, which helps the audience relate to Huma as it shows her life isn’t directly related to events just happening in this movie. At one point in the film (just after we see the sign “dos semanas despues” arise, we see photos of Huma as a younger actress smoking a cigarette. Photographs however are not the only props used excessively in this scene. Almodóvar makes use of objects such as mirrors to give the audience a better sense of the spaciousness of the room in which Huma and Manuela are in. It also helps us view photographs and other objects (such as flowers) which would ordinarily be out of sight in a normal shot. The use of mirrors (and reflection) also enables us to see characters expressions when they are not looking in the direction of the camera. This effect could have been achieved with fewer mirrors, once again proving that Almodóvar tends to clutter his scenes. The effects which I am describing seem to be bearing negativity on Almodóvar’s close attention to detail, which is not at all fair. In the scene where Manuela and Huma go looking for Nina after she disappears shows the setting to be, strategically, set up very well. The way the director shows small groups of shady characters, settling around blazing fires and wearing warm clothes, shows that Almodóvar too can expose stereotypes in ways any audience can recognise. Here he illustrates his opinion of the down and out drug addicts living in the cities’ drains and gutters. In this scene however Almodóvar decides upon leaving some of the space bare, leaving it less cluttered gives a better sense of the number of people who would associate themselves with this district. It is obvious that this scene was set on location – one can clearly see a city of lights in the background as well as typical sub-urban buildings and fencing in the foreground. Some of the other scenes we see are paradoxical to this and are blatantly set in a studio. This much is obvious when we see the restrictions on space. Never is this clearer than in the scene where Manuela is driving Huma around Barcelona in search of Nina. The reason we can tell this shot is ‘fake’ is due to the lighting in the rear windows giving the effect of the car moving quickly past streetlights... however moments into it, you can see a pattern in the lighting emerge. It appears that the majority of this film was shot with the lighting providing a ‘natural’ brightness. However at the same time, the aforementioned scene (with Huma and Manuela driving), artificial light is used to show streetlights shining in through the windows. Artificial illumination is also present in the scene whereby we see Manuela returning to Barcelona. When she goes to “el barrio de las putas”, the scene is very dark yet light appears to focus on two characters beside the bridge. Lighting is not only used to brighten areas up, sometimes it is used to create shadows. In the scene where Manuela asks the drug addicts if they have seen Nina, we can clearly see drop-shadows in the corners and the sides of the streets. This becomes effective when the audience realises that this scenario could occur to them, and that they can identify with having seen shadows such as this in reality. When talking about mise-en-scène, we frequently forget to mention costumes and make up. The costumes worn by the characters here are typical of the late nineteen nineties (both when “Todo Sobre Mi Madre” was set and produced) and is hence representative of those styles. The outfits vary throughout the cast, but the only ones that really stand out are those of “las putas” and “Sor María Rosa”. We see latter wearing long dresses, typical dress code of “las Carmelitas”. The former are stereotypically dressed in short skirts and low cut tops. This helps the audience identify with the situation. In my opinion Almodóvar goes a step too far in one scene where he shows – unnecessarily – a whore with a breast hanging out of her top. Unlike many of Almodóvar’s other works such as “La Mala Educación” and “Tacones Lejanos”, the costumes are very realistic and apart from that of Lola, not that stylised. It is to be expected from Almodóvar’s lifestyle choices and previous pieces of work that some characters will be dressed in drag, but surprisingly this element has been toned down in this film. At times we can notice a correlation between the colours of the costumes and those of the set. For example, when Huma visits Manuela and Sister María Rosa in their apartment, the red and yellow of her clothes matches that of the sofa and wallpaper in the room. This is not the only time red is used in this film; in fact this colour features quite predominantly in the movie. Be it in the makeup (lipstick), the props (Manuela’s umbrella, women’s’ coats) or in the set (wallpaper and fabrics). Critics may argue that it is used excessively and could be replaced with other films. Perhaps it has an underlying meaning; the colour red is often associated with the themes of prostitution and homosexuality, two areas which figure as main points in this film. Costume props were surprisingly were not commonly used, but when they were, this was only to show that Huma’s play or Manuela’s drama series were taking place. Make-up was generally not visible in this film, with a couple of exceptions. On Lola and Agrado, make-up had generally been over-applied to give the appearance that they were desperately trying to look more feminine. It was also visible when we see Huma preparing for her play, during the performance of “A Streetcar Named Desire” and afterwards in the dressing room when Huma was seen to be taking it off. Hairstyles once again did not play a major part in the film and generally did not change throughout the course of the motion picture. Although, I found that in the case of Lola, his/her hair had extensions put in, possibly in an attempt to look more feminine. The rest of the character’s hairstyles appeared to be au-naturale, and representative of the era. Finally let us not forget the acting. The acting in this film, like that of most other films is predominantly naturalistic, conversely during the scenes when we see Huma’s play, the acting style changes to a rather more non-naturalistic styling. Yet, when we see Manuela acting in her drama, it is somewhat more difficult to decipher whether she is the protagonist of her show, or of ours. This complicates the audience’s understanding in two scenes in particular. The first is when we see Esteban taking notes on the set of his mother’s drama – we only find out Manuela is acting when the filming pauses and the camera and pans across to show Manuela on set. The second instant is when Manuela finds out Esteban has passed away in hospital, we do not know and find it hard to figure out whether she is mourning the loss of her son or if the doctors ‘breaking the news’ are part of her drama series and she is in character. As this film was shot directly from a screenplay and not a book, it remains harder to interpret what we would have imagined the characters to look like from a story alone. In terms of their physical attributes and appearance, characters such as Lola fit in with the stereotypical norms of current cinematic and cultural norms. I certainly believe that the actors have been cast in such a way, that the audience will be able to recognise them as identifying with their characters. To sum up, as we have seen with all aspects of the mise-en-scène of “Todo Sobre Mi Madre”, at times Almodóvar’s works can be overly excessive while at others, certain aspects may remain in their simplicity and still remain impressive. That is to say that Almodóvar’s work certainly is – but not always – excessive and cluttered. -------------------------------------------- [ 2 ]. Author: Unknown, Topic: The Colour Red, Source: Wikipedia, Site: www.en.wikipedia.org/red, Date Accessed: 7th November 2007.