When we think about Pedro Almodóvar, we often associate him with very deep, meaningful explorations of the human condition, films that merge socio-cultural discussions with queer imagery and profoundly moving stories of individuality. However, this stage of his career has only been functional for the past two decades, since he started out his career as an enormously provocative young filmmaker who directed some outrageous, shocking comedies that remain controversial in many spheres today. Many would think that age would weather this quality in the director, and his movement towards more mature, insightful stories indicated that he had tempered his perspective quite considerably. Then, seemingly from nowhere, he produced I’m So Excited (Spanish: Los amantes pasajeros), a return to his earlier days of eccentric dark comedy, where his libertine approach to sexuality intermingled with his tendency towards some of the most caustic satirical jabs to contemporary society produced at the time. Undeniably a minor work in the director’s career if we take into account the enormously brilliant films he has made over the past few decades, but one that compensates for its lighter tone by being an offbeat, hilariously irreverent comedy that makes some unexpectedly profound statements in the process, I’m So Excited! is a peculiar film, but not any less of an achievement for a filmmaker whose work is always impeccable, even the story of a trio of incompetent flight attendants, their absent-minded pilots and the bevvy of frantic passengers comes through as an oddly triumphant piece of filmmaking that is as hilarious as it is outwardly engaging, which makes for a particularly brilliant satire that is slightly more deep than we’d imagine based on a surface-level glance.

As is often the case with Almodóvar’s films, I’m So Excited! is borne from a very simple premise – a trio of flight attendants are flying with a group of passengers en route to Mexico, when they make the shocking discovery that the landing equipment isn’t working properly, necessitating an emergency landing. The passengers in Economy are fast asleep as a result of being drugged by another group of flight attendants, who were seeking some peace. It’s an entirely different matter in First Class, where the small but vocal group of travellers soon learn about the impending danger that awaits them below. In order to placate the passengers, who are only a slender thread away from rebellion, the attendants do their best to serve them copious amounts of alcohol, and perform some unforgettable musical numbers to distract from the problems that they face, all the while stifling their own sexual urges. Almodóvar truly went full-throttle in the creation of this film, constructing a darkly comical satire that touches on a number of issues, while never deviating from the wildly funny eccentricities from which the director put this story together. While we may be tempted to nestle cosily into our seats in anticipation of another moving and comforting masterpiece from a director who produces them at an alarming rate, we’re immediately thrown out of this illusion from the first moment of I’m So Excited!, a film that seems to genuinely enjoy ruffling feathers and showing us a different side of life – and as we’ve seen many times, Almodóvar is not an artist who necessarily stays within the boundaries of what we’d expect to see from him, with entire films being built from the various curiosities that he masterfully constructs into captivating, and often incredibly hilarious, social parables.

I’m So Excited! is a theatrical work in both senses of the word. It takes place almost entirely aboard the aeroplane, with only a few brief sequences set “down below”, such as the opening scene that sets off the main plot. The director has a history working on stage, having worked closely with a number of theatrical groups over the years – and as we’ve seen in many of his films, he often brings similar sensibilities to the screen, adapting small and intimate stories to fit into limited spaces, often in very unconventional ways. Setting the entirety of the film in the cramped cabin of an aeroplane was a bold choice, but it never feels restrictive, with Almodóvar’s assured directorial vision expanding the space and making it appear far larger than it actually is. He is one of the few elite filmmakers who has been able to effortlessly blend both style and substance, frequently employing both in equal measure throughout his films. Most of the time, this results in the lush, intricate melodramas that are as gorgeous to look at as they are profoundly moving. However, it works equally as well in the form of his comedies, since he never passes up an opportunity to infuse even the most irreverent story with some unconventional visual splendour that only heightens the absurdity and draws us further into the surreal world into which Almodóvar seems to be relishing in immersing his audience, helped along massively by a strong ensemble cast. It’s slightly experimental, and clearly formed from the director’s desire to take a brief sojourn from more serious subject matter (the film occurs between two of his most hauntingly beautiful films, the psychological horror The Skin I Live In and the introspective existential drama Julieta), but even at its most exuberant, I’m So Excited! still contains the same compelling, character-driven energy that has punctuated most of the director’s career.

The film also features one of the director’s most theatrical plots in terms of the bewildering places he takes the narrative. Throughout I’m So Excited!, Almodóvar is combining deeply complex social and cultural concepts with a wild approach to sexuality that may have become controversial had there not been such a strong artist behind it. The film questions whether, when presented with an infinite number of problems, if they can all be resolved through a complete, unhinged descent into debauchery, which is exactly what happens. Viewers expecting an intelligent, satisfying resolution to the numerous disparate subplots are going to be immensely disappointed, since Almodóvar’s method is to build the tension up to an unbearable crescendo, and then abandon all logic and allow these characters to just surrender to their animalistic cravings, which almost magically brings them closure and resolution to an already strange story. Once again, this is not the Almodóvar we have grown to expect in recent years, but rather the provocative filmmaker of his younger years, where he would weave together the most absurd stories, taking a very visceral approach to his process, and relying less on rational thought, and more on carnal desires, which amounted to some exceptionally funny, but also quite shocking, works of dark comedy, where the principle of “anything goes” has never been more vivid. He’s having a lot of fun with this premise, and manages to turn a relatively straightforward narrative into one of the most scathing commentaries on modern life, as channelled through the lens of a very dark comedy that is brimming with a sexual energy that many be repulsive to viewers who perhaps weren’t quite as prepared for the raw brutalism that underpins this otherwise hilarious film.

In both the specific ideas he is covering, and his unconventional methods of bringing them to the screen, the director forms an oddly engrossing comedy about desire, told in a format that doesn’t necessarily lend itself to frank and insightful conversations on the nature of sexuality – but this certainly wouldn’t be the first time he did this, proving how on-brand even the most acerbic and controversial humour is for the director, who made so much of his early career through pushing the boundaries of decency. It’s not always the most politically correct film, but it offers an abundance of stimulation (and that’s certainly not limited to the risque subject matter), and should draw any open-minded audience member inward with its peculiar but heartfelt approach to the storytelling process, often managing to be quite profound in its exploration of a number of fascinating themes, while never losing the jagged, subversive edge that makes it such a quintessentially provocative film. I’m So Excited! was described by the director as an extremely light comedy – and while this is certainly true when taken in contrast to other films he made around this time, it does do an enormous disservice to the multitudes of interesting aspects embedded in the film. Almodóvar’s ability to juggle both comedy and drama is unprecedented, and even when making something as ridiculous as this, he manages to find space for some sobering discussions. It’s a stark, complex film that takes the form of a mindless sex comedy, and gradually works its way up into our hearts, leaving us both charmed and thoroughly scintillated, which is a peculiar sensation, but one that has always defined the career of one of cinema’s most interesting artists.