Rarely has a short film been as anticipated as Strange Way of Life, by Pedro Almodóvar, shot in English, with the charismatic actors Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke. Polished and amusing, this cheerful western resolutely has the stamp of the Spanish master, with its Saint Laurent costumes (signed by Anthony Vaccarello). It remains pleasant to look at. Nothing more.
Lasting 31 minutes, including the opening and ending credits, the story opens with the melancholy voice of a young fado singer. His romantic lament is quickly eclipsed by the arrival on horseback of Silva, the cowboy played by Pascal. The latter has come to find Jake (Hawke), a sheriff of a small town in the desert, whom he knew and loved 25 years earlier. However, he has long forgotten this passionate story. Plus, Silva isn’t just motivated by love in this reunion. And he will have to overcome a major obstacle to hope to live and grow old with his lover.
The dusty city set used for filming was originally built for Sergio Leone’s westerns in Almería, Spain. Which gives the film its authenticity. We also find the aesthetics of Almodóvar. The latter thwarts the heterosexist codes of the American western to serve the queer imagination. Both in the colors, the framing and his direction of actors, his touch is resolutely sensual.
Watching this ode to the rebellion of a repressed sexuality, where we also play guns, we wait in vain for something to happen… And the plot barely takes off… when Strange Way of Life ends. Leaving us hungry, with the impression of having had an appetizer as a main course.
