Almodovar is Spain's most successful and controversial director, representing a unique blend of art-house auteur and popular film-maker. His films, with their mix of Hollywood and European styles and of popular melodrama and comedy, have been attracting growing international audiences since the success of _Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown_. His most recent films are the critically acclaimed 'Live Flesh', based on a Ruth Rendell story, and 'All About My Mother', the runaway winner of the 1999 Cannes Film Festival winner of a Cesar award and an Oscar. 'A Spanish Labyrinth' is a much needed, clear and comprehensive introduction to the films of Almodovar, which investigates cultural and national contexts for his work, issues of gender, sexuality, stars, genre, visual style, music and much more. It is the ideal companion to Almodovar for students of film and Hispanic Studies, as well as those generally interested in film and Spanish culture.
