A psychic, a dominatrix, and three gay airline attendants are on a doomed flight together…
No that’s not the setup to a bad joke; it’s the plot of Pedro Almodóvar’s latest film, I’m So Excited. And while it’s not really a “bad” joke, it is one that lacks a powerful punch-line.
Almodóvar is no stranger to campy melodrama and I’m So Excited definitely falls into that category. A bizarre comedy of life in the face of death, I’m So Excited follows a handful of airline crew members and passengers as they live out what could be their final hours. Thanks to an opening scene mishap (featuring Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz in small, cameo-like roles), the landing gear of their plane is malfunctioning and pilots Alex and Benito (Antonio de la Torre and Hugo Silva) are unsure if they will be able to land safely.
Most of the passengers have been drugged to keep them asleep and at ease, but still awake are the Business Class occupants. Amongst them are Bruna (Lola Duenas), a psychic that predicts everyone on the plane is about to have their life changed and that she will lose her virginity during the flight; Norma (Cecilia Roth), a notorious dominatrix that services high-profile clients; Ricardo (Guillermo Toledo), an actor with a reputation for sleeping around; a groom (Miguel Angel Silvestre) that’s a drug mule and his bride (Laya Marti) who performs sex acts in her sleep; Mr. Mas (Jose Luis Torrijo), a troubled businessman; and Infante (Jose Maria Yazpik) a mysterious “security adviser.”
Entertaining them on their fated flight are three unique attendants: Joserra (Javier Camara), who is having an affair with married-with-two-kids Alex; Fajas (Carlos Areces), who is helping unsure-of-himself Benito explore his sexuality; and Ulloa (Raul Arevalo), who seems envious of the sex everyone is having.
The candor between the three attendants is funny and quick-witted, and the actors’ chemistry is delightful. The most ridiculous (and entertaining) scene of I’m So Excited comes when Joserra, Fajas, and Ulloa perform a stylishly choreographed, lip-synched rendition of The Pointer Sisters song, “I’m So Excited” (oh hey, that’s the name of the movie!). This up-tempo sidebar made me wish that the whole film was done as a musical.
