I’m So Excited (2013)
By Keeva Stratton
Internationally feted Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar has established a strong following in his home country, and his earlier film, Volver (2006), was particularly well received here in Australia.
Now, fresh from opening the Los Angeles Film Festival, I’m So Excited is due to land on local shores in September.
The film spoofs the otherworldly antics of a Spanish airline crew and its equally eccentric business class passengers over the course of a long-haul flight. When the ground staff are a little distracted at take-off, the landing equipment gets ignored, leaving a flight that was bound for Mexico, bound for disaster instead.
When the fault is discovered, the pilot and his outrageously camp crew decide that tequila is the first port of call before coming up with a crisis plan. And who can blame them, really?
But soon the business class passengers begin to get suspicious as to their fate when they realise the lack of in-house movies are the least of their problems (economy class have been drugged by the air stewards and remain oblivious), and they pressure the Captain (who is much more troubled by his own love affair) to reveal all.
The film is over the top, but delightfully so. Who wouldn’t enjoy an airline crew that can mix the perfect cocktail and perform a sharply choreographed performance of the Pointer Sisters classic (from which the film draws its name)?
As someone who’s clocked over 50 hours in the air recently, I couldn’t help but feel an affinity to the frustrations, boredom and perfidious air of madness that results.
With I’m So Excited, there’s little doubt that Almodóvar’s following will only continue to grow. And the cast—especially the three air stewards—is definitely going to attract fans in droves.
If camp humour isn’t your thing, then it could feel like a long flight, but for those who enjoy their humour over-the-top, this is an uplifting rollick.
Directed by: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Javier Cámara, Lola Dueñas, Cecilia Roth
Rating: MA15+
Runtime: 95 mins
Release Date: September 19
Reviewer rating: 3/5
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