Almodovar embraces friendship, euthanasia in English-language debut

VENICE — Spanish director Pedro Almodovar’s first English-language movie premiered at the Venice Film Festival on Monday, tackling existential themes like terminal illness and climate disaster through the lens of female friendship.

The Room Next Door stars Tilda Swinton as an ailing war reporter who decides to commit suicide rather than wait for terminal cancer to kill her, persuading an old friend, played by Julianne Moore, to accompany her through her final days.

Mr. Almodovar told reporters his film, which is set in the United States, highlighted the importance of cherishing life, but said it was also vital to allow people to die with dignity at a time of their choosing.

“It’s a film in favor of euthanasia,” Mr. Almodovar said, criticizing countries such as the United States, where so-called “mercy killing” is illegal, unlike in neighboring Canada and a handful of other countries, including Mr. Almodovar’s native Spain.

“I think it’s urgent that this law exists all over the world, without any political or judicial regulation,” said Mr. Almodovar, a veteran filmmaker who shot more than 40 Spanish-language movies before taking the plunge with English.

“For me it’s like to start a new genre, a movie in English, like science fiction,” he told a news conference.

Mr. Almodovar won an Oscar in the best foreign language category for his 1999 film All About My Mother and landed another Oscar for best original screenplay for his 2002 movie Talk to Her — a rare honor for a non-English title.

Ms. Swinton said she had followed Mr. Almodovar since his early triumphs and had always wanted to work on one of his projects. “One day … I said: ‘Listen, I’ll learn Spanish for you, you can make me a mute, I don’t care,’” she recounted.

As the audience watch Ms. Swinton prepare for her end, Mr. Almodovar overlays her story with bleak warnings about impending climate catastrophe, which dwarves the fate of one woman.

“The movie talks about a woman who is dying in a world that is probably also dying,” the 74-year-old director said. “Climate change is not a joke, I don’t know how much evidence we need before people see it’s real.”

But amidst the gloom, Ms. Swinton and Ms. Moore, said they saw light and optimism in the movie, which contains flashes of Mr. Almodovar’s trademark humor and sharp social commentary.

“You walk away feeling like you’ve seen yourself, you’ve seen other human beings, and you feel more and more grateful for each day that you’ve lived,” said Moore, who won an Oscar for best actress in 2015 for her performance in Still Alice.

The Room Next Door is one of 21 movies competing for the prestigious Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival, which will be awarded on Sept. 7. — Reuters