Pedro Almodóvar’s films can be hit or miss with me and this one is definitely a miss in my book. The main story is perfectly cromulent even if some decisions in it seem a little suspect. On top of that is tacked on a secondary story about excavating the mass graves of victims of the Franco regime. This lends dramatic weight to the film but feels like a cheap trick as it’s so tangential. If it had been made by a lesser director, I think it would be a solid credit in their filmography. But with such renowned names attached to this project, it ends up being underwhelming.

After professional photographer Janis Martínez finishes a shoot with  forensic archaeologist Arturo, she asks for his help on a personal project. There is a mass grave in her home village where some men were killed during the Spanish Civil War and their descendants have been wanting to have their remains excavated and properly buried for decades. While working together they give in to their mutual attraction and have sex even though Arturo is already married. When Janis becomes pregnant she decides to have the baby on her own and break up with Arturo after he tries to convince her to have an abortion. In the hospital she shares a room with pregnant teenager Ana who is also going to be a single mother. They become friends and after they both give birth to baby girls, promise to stay in touch with each other. Janis names her baby Cecilia and lets Arturo see her. However he declares that he sees nothing of himself in the baby and asks her to do a paternity test. Janis is outraged, yet secretly tests to see if Cecelia is her biological child. She is devastated to discover that she is not and already realizes that the hospital must have switched infants with Ana. Yet by then she has already grown too attached to Cecilia to give her up.

The opening scenes of Janis being passionate about getting justice for the victims of the Franco regime may be somewhat misleading but soon enough the main plot of accidentally switched babies becomes both obvious and a little melodramatic. Janis is an intelligent woman with impressive composure and Penélope Cruz plays her wonderfully. This means that even though the film has the look and feel of a soap opera at times, Janis manages to resolve her problems and conflicts in a remarkably rational manner, minimizing the drama of what would be to most people an extremely traumatic experience. This makes for an admirable character but I’m not sure it’s the best choice for a drama on the theme of a mother realizing that her baby has been swapped for another. I’m also irritated that they add unnecessary digressions like Janis and Ana entering a sexual relationship with each other. At one point, it nearly becomes a thriller as Ana seems to become unhealthily attached to her. That entire plotline seems to exist only just so that they can have a sex scene together. It’s ridiculous and demeaning.

I did rather like that after being absent for most of the film, Arturo makes a return at the end together with the side plot of excavating the mass graves. The somber subject cannot but add a measure of gravitas to what at times feels more like a tv movie in its mise-en-scène. It does feel like a dodge though as thematically it’s unrelated to the main story. One possibility is that DNA analysis reveals the ultimate truth in both situations but that’s really stretching things. What it does achieve is allow Janis’ dilemma to be resolved in a low-key manner and avoid harsh confrontations that would permanently harm relationships between the characters. It’s such a dodge that everyone magically becomes friends in the end. The scenes where they talk things out and make the important decisions simply take place off-screen. It’s just not as approach that feels satisfying or offers any insight. Telling mothers that they should be willing to give up their child if genetic testing reveals that they’re not the real mother seems like a really bad and cruel piece of advice.

Both of the issues raised by the film are real. The mass graves of the Franco era and the continuing divisions in Spanish society are real. The problem that some babies are indeed accidentally swapped at birth is real. But while the excavations of the graves under expert supervision would a good way to start the healing process for the relatives of the victims, expecting everyone to act like Janis in such a situation is unrealistic and unsympathetic. The premise is solid but Almodóvar who also wrote the script himself doesn’t seem to be sure how to end it. The result is disappointing as we justifiably expect more from him.