Law of Desire (1987)
- Original title
- La ley del deseo
- Directed by
- Pedro Almodóvar
- Genre
- drama film, comedy film, comedy drama, romantic comedy, romance film, LGBTQ-related film
- Country
- Spain
- Runtime
- 1h 42m
- Rated
- NC-17
- Rating
- 7.1 of 10 from 332 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
A gay film director falls into a dangerous romance with a possessive young man. His transgender sister also faces her own emotional turmoil. The story follows violent desire and complicated family bonds.
passionateintensetragicomicsensualmelodramaticfast-paceddarkly humorousobsessive
What happens
The Law of Desire (Spanish: La ley del deseo) is a 1987 Spanish comedy thriller film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar. Starring Eusebio Poncela as Pablo, Carmen Maura as Tina and Antonio Banderas as Antonio, it was the first film Almodóvar made independently with his own production company El Deseo. The story focuses on a complex love triangle between three men. Pablo, a successful gay film director, disappointed in his relationship with his young lover, Juan, concentrates on a new project, a monologue starring his transgender sister, Tina. Antonio, an uptight young man, falls possessively in love with the director, and in his passion would stop at nothing to obtain the object of his desire. The relationship between Pablo and Antonio is at the core of the film; however, the story of Pablo's sister, Tina, plays a strong role in the plot. Shot in the later part of 1986, The Law of Desire was Almodóvar's first work centered on homosexual relationships. He considers The Law of Desire the key film in his life and career. It follows the more serious tone set by Almodóvar's previous film, Matador, exploring the unrestrained force of desire. The film's themes include love, loss, gender, family, sexuality, and the close link between life and art. The Law of Desire was met with general positive reactions from film critics, and it was a hit with audiences, becoming Almodóvar's most successful film up to that point. It toured many international film festivals, winning the Teddy Award in Berlin, and it made Almodóvar known internationally. Elements from The Law of Desire grew into the basis for three later films: Carmen Maura appears in a stage production of Jean Cocteau's The Human Voice, which inspired Almodóvar's next film, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown; Tina's confrontation scene with an abusive priest formed a partial genesis for Bad Education and also as an inspiration for Almodóvar’s short film The Human Voice, his own version of Cocteau's film, starring Tilda Swinton, the first English language film by Almodóvar. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
More like this
Three Bewildered People in the Night (1987)
She Must Be Seeing Things (1987)
Tras el cristal (1987)
Maurice (1987)
Adela (1987)
Amor de hombre (1997)
Two of Us (1987)
The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.