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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 9 OCTOBER 2016 38 This Week IN CINEMAS TODAY Embassy Cinemas Valletta Tel. 21 227436, 21 245818 Deepwater Horizon (12A) 10:30, 13:45, 16:10, 18:30, 20:55 The Magnificent Seven (12A) 14:30, 18:00, 20:50 Ben Hur (12A) 18:15, 20:55 Kubo and the Two Strings (PG) 10:00, 12:15, 16:00 The Girl On The Train (15) 10:30, 13:30, 16:00, 18:30, 21:00 Julieta (15) 10:00, 12:15, 14:30, 16:45, 19:00, 21:15 Bridget Jones' Baby (15) 10:10, 13:00, 15:45, 18:25, 21:05 Valletta Living History (U) 10:00, 10:45, 11:30, 12:15, 13:00, 13:45, 14:30, 15:15 Eden Cinemas St Julian's Tel. 23 710400 Deepwater Horizon (12A) 14:00, 16:20, 18:45, 21:10, 23:15 The Girl on the Train (15) 14:00, 16:25, 18:50, 21:15, 23:40 Captain Fantastic (15) 14:00, 16:25, 18:50, 21:15 Finding Dory (U) 14:05, 16:15 Southside with You (12A) 14:10, 18:35 Nine Lives (PG) 14:10, 16:15 Sausage Party (15) 14:20, 16:30, 18:50, 21:10 Don't Breathe (15) 14:20, 16:30, 18:50, 21:00, 23:05 Bridget Jones' Baby (15) 14:25, 18:20, 21:05, 23:30 Anthropoid (15) 14:25, 18:15, 20:55, 23:25 Ben-Hur (12A) 14:30, 18:10, 20:55 The Magnificent Seven (12A) 14:30, 18:00, 20:50 The Infiltrator (15) 14:30, 18:10, 20:50, 23:30 Imperium (15) 16:10, 20:45 Julieta (15) 18:30, 21:05 Morgan (15) 18:40, 20:45 Empire Cinemas Bugibba Tel. 21 581787, 21 581909 The Girl on the Train (15) 11:00, 13:30, 16:10, 18:35, 21:00 Deepwater Horizon (12A) 11:15, 13:40, 16:05, 18:35, 20:55 The Infiltrator (15) 10:40, 13:15, 15:55, 18:30, 21:05 Bridget Jones' Baby (15) 10:30, 13:15, 15:55, 18:30, 21:05 Ben-Hur (12A) 10:35, 13:15, 15:50, 18:30, 21:05 The Magnificent Seven (12A) 10:30, 13:15, 15:50, 18:30, 21:05 Don't Breathe (15) 11:10, 14:00, 16:30, 18:35, 20:45 MAKING the 20th feature by the hugely popular Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar, Julieta can be seen as something of a return to form for the beloved filmmaker after the hyper-camp trifle that was the air hostess comedy I'm So Excited (2013). Loosely adapted from three short stories by celebrated Cana- dian author Alice Munro Julieta somehow manages to be both a character study and an involving, twisty-turny drama at every step of the way. The razor-sharp clar- ity of its focus and pace is largely down to Almodovar's predilec- tion for shamelessly playing around with time-tested story- telling tropes. But his deft hand assures that these do not become clichés to lean on, but instead serve as powerful – and timeless – ways to unspool his narrative. Former teacher of Classical Lit- erature Julieta (Adriana Ugarte) has a secret. It's a secret that threatens to unravel her new- found happiness with Lorenzo (Darío Grandinetti) when out of the blue, she scuppers their plans to move to Portugal and decides to stay put in Madrid instead. A chance encounter with her daughter Antia's (Pris- cilla Delgrado/Blanca Pares) old school friend Beatriz (Michelle Jenner) pushes her to write down just what's been eating at her for over a decade: her romantic first days with her fisherman husband Xoan (Daniel Grau) and the tor- turous latter years that followed. Colourful and complex are two of the many adjectives one can use to describe Almodovar, but perhaps 'subtle' may not in fact be one of them. This should not be taken as a slight on the man's sizeable oeuvre in general and this film in particular, however. Almodovar's ability to meld in various references – be they filmic, literary or taken from oth- er references in the global visual culture – while maintaining the pace and clarity of his storytell- ing could very well be the reason why he's a 'foreign filmmaker' who consistently enjoys pride of place among mainstream Holly- wood productions. In the case of Julieta, Almodo- var signposts 'Greek Tragedy' fairly early on, with the crushing weight of inevitability – also a key trait in those Classical texts – being felt through the various coincidences that land on Juli- eta's doorstep. Characters are also paired in obvious binaries, which makes their collective des- tinies even more keenly felt. In lesser hands, it would all have felt a bit contrived: like a soap opera straining for more elevated thematic relevance. But working his expert charm on his actors as he always does, Almo- dovar ensures that each frame and plot development is suffused with compassion for the charac- ters and brimming with pathos at their – often interlinked – plight. And while the necessarily mini- mal approach of the story does not really call for Almodovar's more brash visual turn, the mas- ter stylist still uses it sparingly but effectively, as in the scenes of Julieta and Xoan's early court- ship, with her bright blue shirt and her shock of short blonde hair. An impeccable piece of story- telling that's complex at its core but breathtakingly simple in its execution, Julieta will appeal to all those who take the plunge into its pained but beautiful jour- ney. The burden of absence ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ALMODOVAR ★ ★ ★ ★ CAVIAR ★ ★ ★ ROCK STAR ★ ★ AVATAR ★ AU REVOIR FILM By Teodor Reljic JULIETA (15) ★ ★ ★ ★ Fresh pain: Adriana Ugarte plays the younger Julieta Fragile dreams: Julieta (Emma Suarez) is burdened with a painful past she's struggling to reconcile with in Pedro Almodovar's latest time-hopping drama