A medical thriller and a horrific reflection on the power of the plastic surgeon in the modern world. Based on Thierry Jonquet’s novella Tarántula, The Skin I live In marked something of a reunion for actor Antonio Banderas and director Pedro Almodóvar after 21 years of not working together.
Unlike others who have moved into this territory – such as Jess Franco with his notorious Faceless (1987) – here Almodóvar keeps the gore to a minimum, something that does nothing to arrest the feeling of unease that permeates almost every frame. The director himself has remarked on the influence of Fritz Lang’s work and Georges Franju’s Eyes Without a Face, but ultimately, with all its visual elan and subtle complexity, this remains undoubtedly the work of Almodóvar.
