← Back to results
High Heels
Tacones lejanos
1991 114 min Spain, France R 18+
★6.8
Drama, Comedy, Crime
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Trailers
Description
After being estranged for 15 years, flamboyant actress Becky del Paramo re-enters her daughter Rebeca's life when she comes to perform a concert. Rebeca, she finds, is now married to one of Becky's ex-lovers, Manuel. The mother and daughter begin making up for lost time, when suddenly, a murder occurs...
US Gross:
$1.71M
Worldwide:
$1.71M
Starring
Victoria Abril
Actor
Marisa Paredes
Actor
Miguel Bosé
Actor
Awards
César Awards 1993
— Best International Feature Film
Goya Awards 1992
— Best Sound
Goya Awards 1992
— Best Costume Design
Goya Awards 1992
— Best Film Editing
César Awards 1993
— Best International Feature Film
Goya Awards 1992
— Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Golden Globe 1992
— Best International Feature Film
Key opinion
High Heels is a polarizing melodrama that balances Almodóvar’s signature psychological depth with an overtly campy, theatrical style. While audiences and critics admire the visual craft and intense lead performances, many find the narrative pacing and genre-bending plot to be either brilliantly subversive or distractingly disjointed.
| Theme | The complex, emotionally charged dynamic between mother and daughter serves as the film's strongest psychological anchor. | |
| Production | The film features striking visual flair, utilizing vibrant color symbolism, iconic costume design, and ornate set pieces to define character arcs. | |
| Acting | Lead actresses Marisa Paredes and Victoria Abril deliver committed, visually compelling performances that ground the film's more eccentric tendencies. | |
| Score | Ryuichi Sakamoto’s evocative score is widely recognized as a solid and effective contribution to the film’s atmosphere. | |
| Screenplay | The film functions as a blend of detective mystery and melodrama, leaving some viewers satisfied by its campy, postmodern irony, while others dismiss the plot as a repetitive and disjointed parody. | |
| Pacing | The pacing is viewed as inconsistent; some find the transitions between grotesque farce and restrained drama seamless, while others perceive the film as dragging and unevenly edited. | |
| Ending | The resolution is divisive, with some finding the final emotional beats poignant and tragic, while others feel the ending is forced, unconvincing, or bleak. |