Taking off----Javier Camara and Raul Arevalo as flight attendants on a disastrous plane in I'm So Excited
I have to admit that I have never seen a Pedro Almodovar comedy. Yes...I have never seen Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown, What Have I Done To Deserve This? or Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!. The only ones I had seen of his before were Bad Education and The Skin I Live In. I admittedly didn't like either of those films at all. It's not that I can't see why people don't like them or anything...they just weren't up my alley. I tell you this so you know that I went into Almodovar's newest film, I'm So Excited an Almodovar comedy virgin and one could argue an Almodovar virgin in general. Perhaps that's why I'm So Excited is admittedly the most fun I have had at the cinema in a long while. I laughed as much at this film as American comedies This Is The End and The Heat combined. Also...remember that I am a straight, young male. I must mention this because this film is the gay version of Airplane just like Soul Plane was the black version. The difference between Soul Plane and I'm So Excited is that I laughed through every second of the latter.
The film stars Javier Camara, Raul Arevalo and Carlos Areces as a group of gay flight attendants who are informed that something has gone terribly wrong with the airplane. When they hear of the distressing news...they try to keep the passengers on the plane entertained. This doesn't seem to work, however. That is until---well, you go see the film to figure out.
The film mostly takes place inside of the plane. There are maybe 15 minutes that take place elsewhere. Almodovar is masterful at keeping us engaged when mostly the location is inside an airplane. The film is not just people acting wacky---as funny as that is, however. The film is also an incredibly biting satire on how we live our day to day lives. The way these people act inside the airplane is quintessential to society. Everyone on the airplane represents someone you know and maybe even you. Almodovar (who I forgot to mention also wrote the film) provides the audience with the snooty businessman, the excited newlyweds, the attractive woman who still can't seem to find love and many other relatable characters. I was admittedly skeptical that Almodovar was going to paint the flight attendants as stereotypical gay characters but he didn't. He gives each of the flight attendants their own personality and traits.
The look of the film also caught my eye. It is bright and colorful without being too showy. This is one of the many reasons that the film has an infectious energy that is unmatched by any film I've seen in the past couple of years. It is so energetic, in fact, that the audience feels as if they are on the airplane with the characters. However, there is one aspect of the film that falls a little short. It involves the ex-girlfriend of one of the passengers and a missing cellphone. Almodovar introduces that idea in a 10 minute scene that partially takes place outside of the plane but seems to have forgotten about it until the very end. That is a very small complaint for a masterfully made film, however.
I'm So Excited is a wacky, outrageous and hysterically funny comedy from a man with whom I can now see why he's so admired. There was not a moment I wasn't laughing during this film. If you're okay with reading the jokes the film throws at you then I can almost guarantee that you too will have a great time watching this film.
(4 and 1/2 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated R for strong sexual content including crude references, and drug use)
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