1) Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.
In class we discussed the mood of the of film. I said it was a twisted psychological thriller. We discussed the way it was shot and how creative it was got when showing two stories intertwine within another. We also spoke about Benigno’s (Javier Camara) state of mind in this film. I was assuming he was a psychopath. We discussed how he was in love with Alicia (Leonor Watling) and how he took care of her when she fell ill. Benigno was definitely mentally troubled. The double edge sword here is that in harming her, he woke her up from a coma.
2) Find a related article and summarize the content.
I chose this article on content because it was the most interesting to me. It is from a nursing perspective but also touches base on the film as a whole. They focus on the men in the film and how they interact with their lover (women) before they are comatose and once they are in a coma. The two story’s intertwine and Benigno befriends Marco (Dario Grandinetti) once they meet in the facility. This article points out how they show mostly the nurses caring for patients, whereas most films tend to show the Primary Doctor. They show how they bath them, care for them, talk to them. They also showed how spiritually connected or in love (obsessed) Benigno is with his patient and love object (Alicia). He does things that she was passionate about, he talks to her as if she is awake. The article stops suddenly when they start to talk about the treatment given by Benigno being ambiguous and mixed.
3) Apply the article to the film screened in class.
The reason I chose this article is because it did in fact make me look at the film from another perspective rather than just honing in on the main character and his psychosis. It opened my mind to think outside the box and understand that he did in fact commit a crime by rapping Alicia while she was in a coma but, also he did wake her out of it. She never ended up giving birth to a live baby and I am sure she was scard for life. On the other side of reality, she got her life back. It seeming very traumatic to experience, she also could not have felt it. And towards the end of the film, you see her back at the dance studio. She goes back to her passion and starts training. That shows strength and depth of character. You also see that Benigno is in jail for the crime he committed and once he finds out that he cannot get out, he kills himself before finding out that she is alive. It is a major tragedy but also another double edged sword because, if he in fact did get out of jail, one must wonder if he would have stalked her down and caused harm. They played him out to be sweet and innocent but that could also take a turn. This shows crimes of love and obsession. The way this film was written, filmed and edited is extremely brilliant.
4) Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.
“Talk to her” is a film with an array of themes; we talked about it being like a soap opera to an all out tragedy. One of the themes is that men can carry characteristics of women. Both of the main male characters were very feminine. We see a man living his emotional life through a woman and men caring for and devoting their lives to a patient in a coma. Benigno and Marco are both waiting by a bedside for the woman they love to wake, although you see the Doctor telling them that the chances are slim to none. In this very selfless act, Director Pedro Almodovar film’s usually show a familiarity with strange angels of human sexual expression. He shows us something creepy about their devotion in this film. He also throws in a man ray type film in black and white that Benigno goes to see that shows a man crawling into a woman’s vagina. Hence this is a bit disturbing and comedic of a black film. But, the next scene he is with Alicia alone and bathing her coma state body, telling her about the film. Then the unthinkable occurs. She is pregnant. I was not expecting this and although that act of crime and insanity occurred, she ended up waking from a coma. I do think the story is intricate and the way the story was written and filmed and formed is amazing. Very real and emotional as well as disturbing and moving, as all good art.
CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM
1) (x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.
2) ( x) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.
3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.
4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.
5) ( x) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.
6) (x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.
7) ( x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.
8) (x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.
Name: ____jenevieve campo____________________ Date: ____________2/20/17___________
1) (x ) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.
2) ( x) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.
3) ( x ) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.
4) ( x ) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.
5) ( x) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.
6) (x ) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.
7) ( x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.
8) (x ) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.
Name: ____jenevieve campo____________________ Date: ____________2/20/17___________
