Question- From now on, people are going to have to say that, apart from being a good director of actresses, you're also a good director of actors. The main roles in "Talk to Her" are two men -and the two actors behind them are fantastic.
Answer- I did agree being considered a good director of actresses -just a matter of education- but it's just another one of the many clichés I have to put up with.

Q - That's why I mention it…
A- In any case, "Talk to Her" is not my first movie with male protagonists. "Live Flesh" is a testicular film; "Matador" and "Law of Desire" are also stories in which men lead the action...

Q - Who do you enjoy the most?
A- Talking about?

Q - Work, do you enjoy working with actors more than with women?
A- They are all likely and greatly enjoyable. But it is true that I've written more female roles.

Q - Obviously..
A- I think women make me think of comedies, while men make me more tragic.

Q - Why don't you make more comedy?
A- Because I don't find the scripts. But I'm going to force it …

Q - Is it possible to force a script, with all its elements and tone?
A- No, except for documentaries and biographic films.

Q - What genre does "Talk to Her" fit in?
A- I just know it's not a western, nor a CIA film. It's not James Bond-like either, and it's definitely not a classic.

Q - But there is a classical touch to it...
A- That's right, seven minutes of action set in 1924.

Q - Which are causing plenty of gossip...
A- And despite being silent...

Q -Don't you think it's hazardous to interrupt the general narration and insert a completely different one, unless it's a flashback of the characters themselves?
A- Very…

Q - And aren't you afraid this might confuse or distract the audience?
A- I was frightened to death as we shot it.

Q- What is the reason for this "detour" from the central story?
A- The central story is not stopped, it fades. However, "as I was nurturing the script", the idea was to use this silent movie as a sort of cover for the central one.

Q- To cover what?
A- To cover what's actually going on. I don't want to show it.

Q - That's manipulating.
A- It's just a literary option, and not an easy one. That's why I'm glad with the outcome.

Q - This is not the first time your characters speak through another movie. In "High Heels"...
A- Victoria Abril yells at her mother, Marisa Paredes, in a scene of "Autumn Sonata" just to let her know the love and hate she feels for her. To me, the films I see become part of my existence, and I used them as such. There's no intention to do homage to their authors, nor to imitate them. Telling stories has to do with my biography (and I'm not talking about a debate here). I remember telling my sisters the movies in my childhood. I would become all excited with their memory and, as I narrated them, I also re-invented them making my own version. And my sisters happened to like my hilarious stories better then their originals. I remember them asking me at still times: "Pedro, tell us the film we saw yesterday"…

Photos de Miguel Bracho ©