Pain and Glory (2019)

Stars	User	Rating
4	Bown	86 _80th
Although it sometimes seems scattered, the beautiful final scene brings it together perfectly. Incredible performances and a wonderful score, with some fantastic Almodovar melodrama and humour.
3	deaddilly	85 _84th
I love when masterful directors make slice-of-life films. No different here. Almodovar is as poignant and graceful as ever - celebrating the small things in a completely human way. I loved the way this film handles drug use, romance, ambition... I loved basically everything about it. The sleight of hand revealed in the closing scene is just wonderful meta-cinema and adds a deeper existential core to the film.
3	Corbad	85 _90th
Patient and captivating. A softly intimate portrait exquisitely performed, its subtle skeleton of story and memory given deep feeling by Antonio Banderas and the rest of the cast. Often poignant, but perhaps too slow and quiet to be profoundly moving.
2	Hofschneider	81 _69th
That last shot
2	comepelicula	80 _87th
You can watch a more mature Almodovar directing this film, looking back on inspiration, legacy and what is next, a very reflexive and good watch. A really enjoyable film.
2	rebeccalex	75 _50th
What an ending!
2	feublo	88 _83rd
Really enjoyed this. From it's self-reflecting formula, to it's scattered, tender moments, this strung together comfortably without harming it's genuine expression. A realistic lens that concludes quite remarkably!
1	djross	70 _76th
About the degree to which we are or are not prisoners of both unresolved past difficulties and the accumulation of bodily frailties, and the way each of them tends to reinforce the other. Impressively composed movie, as always in the latter part of Almodóvar's career. Perhaps the main weakness is that the dialogue is a little lacklustre.
1	Alex Watkins	4 _70th
Almodovar has more passion in his pinky finger than most directors can summon on their best days. In a film that unflinchingly confronts one man's regrets, failures, and the litany of miseries which make his day-to-day so terribly punishing, he never loses sight of life's capacity for beauty - or, of course, the transformative and purifying power of art, of which the film is a celebration as much as anything else.
1	twincinema	80 _75th
I love when directors use a really hot person as their stand-in. For me, if I used Timothee Chalamet, people would find it refreshing that I was using someone uglier. When this film was getting a ton of praise in 2019, I was confused because I thought people were talking about Pain & Gain. I mean, Pain & Gain is great, but just confused that people were discussing it in 2019.
1	KasperL	75 _77th
'Talk to Her' is still my favorite by Almodóvar, but this very solid drama with an accomplished (and Cannes-winning) performance by Banderas cracked my Almodóvar top-3. Almost on par with 'Bad Education', I'd say.
1	bentien	69 _70th
Well deserved actor award in Cannes to Banderas for this out-of-character performances that echoes the life of director Almodóvar. The film is somewhat uneven, with some parts achieving true greatness and others fail to make an impact.
1	glumpy_99	96 _91st
Deliberately paced, deeply felt masterpiece from Almodóvar requires a degree of patience and attention from its viewer but rewards in spades, thanks to a revelatory turn from Banderas standing in for Pedro in this loose riff on 8 1/2 - captures the feeling of nostalgic rumination expertly, as Mallo weaves in and out of the pained present to a transformative moment in his childhood (Cruz is also excellent in the flashbacks). All ties up with a neat meta-ending which never feels like a cheat.
1	lethias	89 _82nd
Almodovar that doesn't feel as much Almodovar as Almodovar usually feels like Almodovar. Banderas is wonderful and steals the show. Not sure if this is a autobiographic piece or maybe partly, but characters struggles feel very real and very dreamy at the same time. Banderas' movies, his expressions, seem cathartic, a wall separating him from his pains... and he gets some relief at the end. A joy to watch.
1	maakal	83 _86th
Classic Almodóvar, with his favorite themes being interpreted fantastically by his favorite actors -- a wonderful addition to his body of work
1	Sadman	75 _45th
Emphatic and unburdened in its sensuality and passion. A lovely color palette. Banderas sells the character's pain and loneliness. His scenes with his mother are touching. The movie as a whole feels a little slight, haphazardly floating on a warm summer breeze. The ending shot improves everything and I have no problem imagining this being a powerful piece of art for someone other than me. Feels appropriate to mention this is my first Almadovar movie ever and I want to watch more in the future.
1	karlson	85 _89th
It occured to me only a day after watching this movie (and it COULD occur to me because the movie is so well-made that it got stuck to my cortex as the image of the sun after looking right into her) that this movie is actually a celebration of life itself, like a Terrence Mallick movie, focusing on the lush sensations and the beauty of our daily struggle, but then with a depressive/lost underscore instead of a manic/enlighted one The European counterpart on the celebration of life.

Average Percentile 64.87% from 906 Ratings