Rent Bitter Christmas (2026)

Confessions of a Serial Storyteller - Bitter Christmas review by griggs

Stuck somewhere between an apology and a confession, Almodóvar turns the camera on the storyteller and finds someone he doesn’t entirely trust.

Leonardo Sbaraglia’s Raúl is basically Pedro with the serial numbers filed off: a filmmaker borrowing from the people closest to him, then wondering when inspiration turns into theft. Mónica accusing him of “vampirising” their lives gets right to the nasty bit. How much can you take from someone before calling it art stops being a defence?

Netflix gets a few jabs too, alongside Almodóvar’s anxiety about where cinema is heading. I’m sympathetic, although hearing Pedro Almodóvar have an existential wobble about filmmaking is rather like watching Picasso worry about the stationery cupboard.

The trouble is the film keeps folding back on itself. Its layers of fiction and autobiography are clever, but eventually I could see the gears turning.

Plenty to think about, occasionally sharp, frequently self-absorbed. Even Almodóvar’s therapy sessions could use an edit.

Not good - Bitter Christmas review by dpollak

I have loved Almodovar's work for years (apart from the terrible airline 'comedy').
But this one is a failure.
The characters are not interesting, but they basically talk about themselves and their problems all through the film, in different combinations.
I actually fell asleep.