What Have I Done to Deserve This?
dir. Pedro Almodóvar · 1984
Life often feels like a struggle against overwhelming circumstances and ungrateful relationships, highlighting the absurdity and complexity of human existence.
Dive into the chaotic world of "What Have I Done to Deserve This?" where absurdity and dark humor collide in an exploration of a woman's struggle against societal constraints. Almodóvar's vibrant visual style and eclectic characters create a uniquely poignant reflection on the trials of domestic life, making it a must-see for lovers of unconventional storytelling.
A henpecked housewife ekes out a meager existence, surrounded by a host of colorful characters: her ungrateful husband, her delinquent sons, her headstrong mother-in-law, and her sex worker neighbor, among others.
Full synopsisspoilers
In Madrid, the housewife Gloria lives in a tiny apartment with her husband, the taxi driver and forger Antonio; her lunatic mother-in-law, who is addicted in bottled water and cupcakes; and two teenage sons, one of them a drug dealer and the other gay. Gloria works as cleaning lady to raise some money for her dysfunctional family and is addicted in pills; her best friend is her neighbor, the call-girl Cristal. Antonio has a secret passion on a decadent German singer for whom he had worked as driver in Germany. A writer tries to convince Antonio to forge letters from Hitler and travels to Germany to meet the singer to invite her to participate in the scheme.
Meanwhile Gloria delivers her gay son to a pervert dentist. Her mother-in-law finds a lizard while walking with her grandson on the street and they call it Dinero (Money) and bring it home. When Gloria has an argument with Antonio, she hits him on the head with a piece of wood, killing him. Now the police detectives investigate the murder case.
Talking points
- family dynamics
- absurdity of domestic life
- feminist themes in film
- the intersection of humor and tragedy
