Kiss of the Spider Woman: A Showstopping Musical Drama

Premiering at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Kiss of the Spider Woman, based on the hit Broadway musical and the book of the same name by Manuel Puig. Puig’s story, previously adapted in a 1985 film, also of the same name, this latest version takes the tale in a musical direction, leaning on their escapist nature in the face of some serious subject matter. Featuring an interesting contrast, playing with fantasy and reality as a means to develop the relationship between two opposites and how they interpret the world, Tonatiuh and Diego Luna bring the film to life through some of their best work. Their chemistry, especially, lights up the screen, making the most out of a limited setting. Over time, fantasy and reality would become one. As is often case, art imitates life, fueled by the fictional old Hollywood musical, Kiss of the Spider Woman. The star of the film within the film, and the third member of the ensemble, Jennifer Lopez, is ethereal as a classic starlet who can clearly sing and fits the role to a tee. Harkening back to those classic Hollywood musicals, from the costumes, to the staging, and the production design, the film is an absolute showstopper that walks a tonal tightrope with ease.

Taking place in 1983 Argentina, Kiss of the Spider Woman occurs in the shadows of a military dictatorship that has run rampant for nearly a decade. Waging an intense war against its political opponents, or anyone that stood in their way, the story is centered around Valentin (Luna) and Molina (Tonatiuh), two prisoners who happened to find themselves thrown together in the same cell. A political prisoner and a man convicted of public indecency, these ideological opposites, coming from much different walks of life, were often at odds with another because of those differences. However, the gap between Valentin and Molina began to narrow as the two bonded over the aforementioned film. Molina’s favorite film, he found refuge in the cinema, essentially growing up there. Enamored by the escapism they represent, he was particularly fond of old time Hollywood musicals and classic Hollywood starlets. A large reason for what made it his favorite film was his connection to its star, Ingrid Luna (Lopez). His north star, he was consumed by her timeless beauty and grace. Molina loved her so much, he wanted to be her.

Valentin, a man very familiar with the brutality of the real world, his standing up and taking part in a group plotting to take control of his country back got him incarcerated. Kept alive solely for information about his group who were plotting against the government, the prison warden hoped that planting Molina in his cell could get him to open up and reveal the information they were looking for. In exchange for the chance of release and reuniting with his mother, Molina was a spy. With plenty of stakes on both sides, the film pushes them aside until later on, in favor of developing the relationship between Valentin and Molina. Coming in on different wavelengths, the more talkative Molina came into Valentin’s life like a whirlwind, filling their cell with a near overwhelming energy that the more hardened prisoner was not used to. Feeling each other out, that energy mellowed out as they learned to coexist, bonding over their respective escapes. While Valentin mostly kept to himself, turning to books for an escape, Molina’s love of film, as he described it, was infectious as it was relentless. Talking about his favorite films, especially ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman,’ one can’t help but be drawn into its world. Over time, Valentin became yet another victim pulled into its web.

Knowing it by heart, Molina recounted the film’s story to Valentin, while adding his own stylistic touches. Bringing to life his version of ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman,’ he put cast himself and Valentin in the film along with Luna. Meanwhile, to accompany Molina’s recounting, the film impressively recreates a classic Hollywood musical narratively and structurally. Told it bits and pieces over the course of the film, fantasy slowly became reality as the film’s story increasingly mirrored that of real life where they were often tested by forces looking to break them. Despite being tasked to inform on Valentin in exchange for getting to see his mother again, Molina’s feelings for him left Molina conflicted. Someone who easily connects with people, he cared about Valentin and took care of him after routinely being tortured by prison officers. Though nothing that he wasn’t already accustomed to, his resolve proved unbreakable. Creating the kind of bond that neither will forget, this fact makes the ending that much more heartbreaking.

Maybe the film could have focused more on the political element of the story, but that would have taken away from Valentin and Molina’s story. Relegating it to merely the backdrop to establish stakes, those stakes could have been better expressed. However, the terrific chemistry of Tonatiuh and Luna more than makes up for that. Balancing the whimsical nature of the musical and the more serious tale of Argentinian political turmoil, both work in service of that two-parter. That being said, its efforts across its musical elements should not be discounted. An absolute showstopper featuring fantastically staged musical numbers and a visual delight, its old Hollywood musical influences can be felt through a level of care that can be seen in every frame on a technical level. Though these efforts would not have hit nearly as hard without a top notch performer to bring them all together, Lopez is the lynchpin for it all. While her singing ability is without question, she is a stunner as she commands the screen as the larger-than-life figure. Luna embodies what a prototypical old Hollywood starlet should be, Lopez is fully up to the task and will be hard to forget.

Going back to Tonatiuh and Diego Luna, the heart of the film, they anchor the film with stellar performances as Molina and Valentin. The former delivers a star-making performance, creating a flawed but tragic character that will connect with audiences from the start. The energy he brings, and his sheer charisma and likeability, make for a complicated young man leaning on his love of movies and his imagination as an escape from his harsh reality and to make sense of the world. Counterbalancing his Molina was Luna, who delivers a strong performance in his own right as Valentin. Living a life of oppression at the hands of the current dictatorship, he decided to do something about it. Subsequently beaten down over time, he was resigned to his current fate, willing to suffer in prison for the cause. Molina, and his recounting of the musical, gave Valentin the will to live and was the only one in his corner. That connection can be a powerful thing as their terrific chemistry truly drove it home.

At the end of the day, Kiss of the Spider Woman is phenomenal musical prison drama, serving as an ode to the power of imagination and a showstopping homage to classic Hollywood musicals.

still courtesy of Mongrel Media

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.