I really enjoyed this book, I think it gave some fascinating insights into Almodóvar’s process and the stories behind his films. I hope that at some point in my career I will get an opportunity to teach Volver at A-Level (I’m a secondary Spanish teacher) because I think this book gave some extra deeper insights that I think are really interesting and could really boost an essay. I really enjoyed the insights into Spanish culture at the time and how he reflects that in various ways in his films.

The only reason it’s not 5 stars is because I didn’t realise that some of the language was going to be so technical and philosophical and so I didn’t always fully understand what the author was trying to say, but that doesn’t take too much away from the overall message of the book. I’d definitely recommend!!

The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar, by James Miller, is an enjoyable book on several levels. In depth without drowning in jargon, there is a lot for readers to digest here.

I liked his volume on Foucault (The Passion of Michel Foucault) so I came to this with some idea what to expect. And my expectations were definitely met. The idea of looking at an auteur's work, especially his later work, to examine both what he is/was grappling with and, by extension, what his viewers may also be grappling with, is an excellent frame for this book. Almodóvar is definitely one of those who can be considered an auteur, with nearly complete control of what he makes.

I'll mention who might enjoy this book rather than give a book report type summary. I'll start with film buffs/scholars. The obvious point is that this is a major director and worth examining in greater detail. Additionally, because of his personal life, we see how both public and personal memory contributes to the worlds a director creates to tell his stories. In this case, an often surreal and over-the-top frame but with very human issues within that frame.

If you enjoy the biographical aspects of such books, you'll find a lot to engage with here, though it is not a straightforward biography. If your interest is specifically biographies of film figures, then you will get more out of it since it is through looking, analyzing, and contextualizing these films that we learn about his life, as well as plenty of quotes from Almodóvar.

If you read these kinds of books to both better appreciate the films covered as well as learn how you yourself views and understands any movie, you'll gain a lot of insight. Admittedly only some of that insight will be directly from the book. It will be when you watch or rewatch these films from your new perspective, reflect on what they might say to you about your own world view, and then take these ways of viewing to future films you may watch that you will begin to realize what you gained.

I would highly recommend this to any of the readers I mention above. In the places where Miller uses theory he does a good job of explaining the ideas rather than just dropping the name of a theory into the text as an explanation on its own. Even if we don't realize it, we all "use" theory when we watch a film, even when we think we're watching "just for entertainment." So putting words to what we already do helps us to appreciate the films even more.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

I recently got my hands on 'The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar: A Self-Portrait in Seven Films' by James Miller, a book that, as the title suggests, explores the real life story of the Spanish director and the mark he has left on European and global cinema by drawing parallels with the themes he has chosen to explore in 7 of his most well-known films, or as Miller puts it, 7 of his most personal works. From 'Volver' to 'Pain And Glory' and 'Bad Education', the book is divided into sections dedicated to each film separately, both exploring Almodóvar's inspirations and arguing the autobiographical nature of these works, as discerned by the author.

Miller does a great job in structuring the book, and sharing enough information to create a big picture by exploring both Spanish and cinematic history in a way that allows the reader to have a clear understanding of Almodóvar's formative experiences, and thus his perspective as a creator. It is worth keeping in mind that although the book is undeniably a thorough and engaging exploration of the auteur's work through a deeply thoughtful and analytical lens, and does often back its points using Pedro Almodóvar's own public statements, it is in the end of the day solely based on the author's personal interpretation of Almodóvar's approach to film making.

Of course cinema, like any other art form, is experienced differently by different people, so naturally every time someone attempts to analyse a film, or in this case an entire filmography, they are unavoidably impacted by the ways it spoke to them personally. It becomes evident from the start that the author has both a vast knowledge of Almodóvar's work and a very deep appreciation of him as a film-maker. This is of course necessary, if one intends to write such a deep analysis of how a creator's life experiences are interwoven into their art, but at the same time the book at points puts Almodóvar on an impenetrable pedestal that leaves no room for critique.

And even though the book definitely addresses the several times the auteur has been challenged for certain artistic choices, specifically about the ways he used themes of trauma and sexual abuse in his works, I would have appreciated a more critical and rounded approach to the matter, especially given the sensitive subjects in question.

There is a balanced middle ground between unquestioning praise and absolute condemnation, that allows for art to be discussed both as a form of expression that is free to touch upon taboos and use uncomfortable subjects to provoke the status quo and invoke certain thoughts and feelings, and also as something deeply human, and thus imperfect, that isn't perceived and experienced the same way by everyone, and therefore cannot be exempt from scrutiny. Unfortunately, the book did not always succeed in finding that balance for me.

'The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar' is first and foremost aimed at someone who is already a fan, but can also be read by anyone curious to learn more about the film-maker and gain a deeper knowledge of his works. The author provides enough information for each film so it's not necessary for someone to have watched all 7 of them before reading, but this also means that spoilers about every important plot point cannot be avoided.

A sincere thank you to Columbia University Press for providing me with a review copy of the book.

3.5 rounded up for this intense ride through Almodóvar-ville, or Almodóvaría.

Listen, I live in Spain and have worked pretty hard to explore the culture as a guiri looking in. Naturally, Almodóvar is a big deal. Naturally, I have tried to watch as many as possible to watch his cannon. I have never really liked any of his work. I fell asleep in Dolor y gloria (one of the seven film covered here), am one of the seamingly few not to like Todo sobre mi madre.

This book felt like a good opportunity to get to grips with why Almodóvar is so lauded. And I guess I learned plenty. I have to say, I found the writing pretty advanced and overly philosophical - maybe it's a Colombia University Press (who kindly, along with NetGalley gave me a copy in exchange for an honest review) thing. That and the Cukor book went hard on film theory.

I was initially going to award this book 3 stars, but somewhere along the line, I guess La flor de mi secreto realised it's a 4 star kind of book. Even though, yet again, I don't like the movies. I thought it was intriging how James Miller tried to rationalise his obsession with rape and consent issues.

My take - not really a spoiler - is that Almodóvar was destined to become a director and used film as his therapy for self-evaluation. Forever a Manchego but a Madrileño in body and soul, everything that happened during his formative film years informed his later films - Los abrazos rotos y Dolor y gloria. Relationships for him are all or nothing, while his mercurial temperament revolves around wanting to be understood as someone who stands alone as a filmmaker.

As a result, when another Almodóvar pops on t'telly. I'll give it a go - with that knowledge to help me along. Thanks, Miller.

The Passion of Pedro Almodovar: A Self-Portrait In Seven Films. Book Review
Full disclosure: for me, the Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar can do no wrong. The sheer volume of top notch films in his catalogue are, in my opinion unmatched and only Rainer Werner Fassbinder immediately springs to mind when it comes to quantity and quality. James Miller's book takes a look at seven films from this rich body of work:

Pepi, Luci, Bom and Other Girls On The Heap

Law of Desire

The Flower of My Secret

Bad Education

Volver

Broken Embraces

Pain And Glory

Here, the themes and textures of these films are explored,acknowledging the autobiographical nature of some of the director's key works, and helping to generate fresh ways of looking at them through better eyes. The director's experiences in Catholic schools are referenced with regard to stories he tells on a personal journey that will hopefully continue for a good while to come. Miller's interpretations of mood and motivation are, for me, always engaging but I will offer friendly advice to those who are at the formative stage of their Almodovar exploration. The analysis of these seven films do, by necessity, include spoilers, so I suggest watching each film before reading about it. My guess is that you'll immediately book a repeat viewing, fired by Miller's ideas.

The Passion of Pedro Almodovar is published in the UK by Columbia University Press, and highly recommended for seasoned admirers and newcomers alike.

James Miller's The Passion of Pedro Almodóvar is a wonderful treat for fans of the director's work. It examines seven of his films and how these films reflect Almodóvar's past and his connection to the art he creates. I appreciated how Miller delves into Almodóvar's biography, his cultural interests, and Spanish history to connect these aspects to his films. This social and cultural examination of Almodóvar's life adds a resonance to the films that we may not have noticed before especially if we were unaware of many of these details.

If I have a small quibble, it's that Miller occasionally goes off on overly philosophical tangents. However, he does an excellent job of illuminating Almodóvar's films in a way that encourages us to reexamine them. Miller's insights make us want to rewatch these films through the lens of the information he provides in the book. That makes the book a valuable addition to any film lover's library. I now want to rewatch "Flower of My Secret" for the fourth time.

I recommend this book to all fans of the auteur, film students, scholars and artists.
One very hard to dispute truth is that Almodovar is an auteur, and this shapes the narrative in Miller’s book.
He starts with five key points (unsure to call them axioms or theories) and establishes them as the narrative points of the book. Each chapter gives us hints about Almodovar’s life (as someone who is moderately familiar with his life story in relation to his filmmaking, some aspects were new to me) and an analysis of the chapter focus: one of his films. How these two arenas are blended was very well done.
As someone who has seen all of covered works in this book, except for the one in chapter 3, I benefited from the analyses and insights plenty.
For some context, I am very fond of Almodovar’s certain films and his signature visual style, and critical of some other works of his, some of which are his more well-beloved ones. Whether you are a die-hard fan or someone like me, who appreciates the best and worse bits in Almodovar’s storytelling, you can enjoy and learn from this book.

I had mixed feelings about this book. In its favour was the fact that it is written in a lively, engaging way - it had a lightness of touch missing from many academic books, and I was never bored. I also learnt a lot about Pedro Almodóvar's early life and some of his lesser-known films. It helped me put his work in context.

The author explains that "as in my previous books, I study an artist's signature obsessions, relying on the powers of sympathetic imagination or empathy." This experimental approach in itself was not the issue - as I mentioned, the book's great strength is that it is not boring - but by identifying so strongly with Pedro Almodóvar, having such intense enthusiasm for his life and work, the author perhaps got so close to his subject, he didn't leave enough oxygen for critique. I would have liked for this book to sometimes take a step back, and question some of the choices the director has made. There are some passages, for example, where the author describes in detail film scenes which have the aura of sexual abuse. For sure, it is a fiction being created on film, but it is also real actors and actresses being put in the situation of re-enacting particular scenarios and fantasies, and that may leave a scar. I was left wondering what a 'Me Too' analysis of these films would look like, written by someone who does not have Pedro Almodóvar on a pedestal.

Apologies that this is a fairly negative review. It might be that this book is simply "marmite" - and I'm sure it will find an audience among enthusiasts of the director's work.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance copy.