Laberinto de pasiones

A camp melodrama/comedy about Sexilia (a nymphomaniac), Sadec (a gay Islamic terrorist), Riza Niro (the son of the emperor of Tiran), and Queti (the daughter of a dry-cleaner). When Riza Niro discovers that Sadec and his colleagues are after him, he disguises himself as a punk rocker, and falls in love with the stunning Sexilia, his first straight relationship.

This film is rarely seen in American because, so far as I know, it has never been released on DVD here. That is somewhat surprising given the major name Almodovar has become. And to have Antonio Banderas as a gay terrorist is something that is so out of character with how we might think of him today (2017).

By American standards, the film may be considered soft-core pornography. There is a fair amount of nudity, with men and women... and men on men. No doubt this was risqué in its day, and some might still consider it so. Whether Americans are prudes or Europeans are perverts, I do not know.

While some of my friends watched (and were delighted by) the latest movie of Almodovar the cinematheque in my village screened his second movie, made almost 30 years ago – 'Labyrinth of Passion'. A couple of months ago I had seen 'Do You Remember Dolly Bell?' (made one year earlier than the film of the Spaniard) the first film of Kusturica, now this one, and beyond the similarities of the game of identifying in early works the spark of genius of the later great movies there is also an abyssal difference between the two. While Kustirica's movie show the restrains of the censorship his work was subjected to in the still-Communist Yugoslavia, Almodovar's film shouts FREEDOM.

Indeed, 'Laberinto de pasiones' is a film that could have been only in 1982 and in Spain. The young director seems to be drunken by the light and colors of a world that just woke up after several decades of dictatorship. His characters live in a Madrid that has become the heaven of all kinds of experiments – in music, in love, in the way people live. There is absolutely nothing that reminds the films of Carlos Saura or Bunuel, the film is made by a young director whose career started with the liberation of Spain, and who celebrates his freedom in making movies and experiments with characters and a social medium on the fringe.

Did I already say that watching this film is fun? Just saying that one of the characters is the son of the Shah of (T)Iran who happens to be gay but then is 'cured' by a nymphomaniac named Sexilia – you already got a feeling of the material Almodovar plays with. He also crosses the line to play a gay punk singer in travesty in one of the several delicacies of the film. Sure, there is a lot of trash around, and not all of it is that original, but then you have Banderas playing a gay terrorist who falls for his target before knowing whom he gets in bed with. All the story is told with a kind of detachment that makes you feel the protective smile of the director when looking at his characters and actors.

No, this film is not a masterpiece, and if I had seen it by or close to the time it was made I am not sure whether I would have liked it, or identified the huge director Almodovar will become starting a few films later. If there is anything close in genre it is rather the low cost comedies that by that time I would have seen in Romania (later the boorekas movies in Israel). There is however in this film enough craziness and bluntness to break away from the crowd, and a hidden tear behind the laughs that I am pretty sure that could not have escaped me completely.

Pedro Almodóvar's third feature is a collection of shock jokes involving incest, homosexuality, nymphomania, Arab terrorists and bad rock groups. It's roughly centered on the adventures of Cecilia Roth, Helga Liné, and Marta Fernández Muro as they seek orgasmic self-awareness. While Almodóvar has continued his fascination with the kinks of the world, he seems to have become more interested in actual issues with alternative life styles as he has.... well, I'd like to write 'matured' but that's not the right word. At this stage, he seems to have been more interested in shocking the conservative, like John Waters, albeit without much sympathy for his subjects, all of whom seem less interested in anything except their own pleasures.

Still, he certainly has an eye for the visual aspects of film making at this stage, which makes this less of a freak show than Waters' movies. Is that a good thing?

I'm not surprised that more people have not seen and commented on this tragic testament to the real Almodovar, since he would most likely prefer it this way. Laberinto de Pasiones is proof that Almodovar was simply a wannabe Spanish version of John Waters, the latter gaining his mainstream fame from "Serial Mom". "Pink Flamingos". With campy acting, full-frontal male nudity, incest, drug references and an unhealthy dose of toilet humor for good measure, it's safe to say Laberinto de Pasiones is Almodovar's "Pink Flamingos"; an exercise in camp and shock-value over substance.

I was delighted when I saw that my husband rented "Labyrinth of Passion". I love Almodovar's films. We both loved the movie. We both couldn't stop laughing. We especially enjoyed the scene in which the transvestite is shooting a photo novel, and while supposedly being menaced by a killer with an electric drill, is told to answer the phone and say, "I can't talk to you right now, I'm being attacked by a sadistic serial killer. If I survive I will call you back". (That would make a great answering machine message come to think of it). We also loved the lady telling her new found beloved, "I went to an orgy after the concert but I couldn't stop thinking of you." (I'm waiting to use that line on Twitter). "Labyrinth of Passion" is a rollicking farce with plenty of high jinks, hilarious dialog and eye candy for everyone. The film has aged well: the 1980s costumes and hairdos add to the wackiness. I would give it a 10 out of 10 rating but I am giving it a 8 for two reasons. The first is the scene which involves laxatives which includes a shot of a lady soiling herself: totally unnecessary, and it brings down the tone of the film to Hollywood gross-out comedy for a moment. The second is the suggestion that Queti is sleeping with her father: shocking, yes, but again, it ruins the tone of the film. Still, I would recommend the film to anyone who wants a sophisticated, spicy, and fun time.