Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown ★★★½ Mujeres al Borde de un Ataque de Nervios 1988 (R) Surreal and hilarious romp through the lives of film dubber Maura, her ex-lover, his crazed wife, his new lover, his son, and his son's girlfriend. There's also Maura's friend Barranco, who inadvertantly lent her apartment to Shiite terrorists and now believes the police are after her as an accomplice in an airline hijacking. They meet in a comedy of errors, missed phone calls, and rental notices, while discovering the truth and necessity of love. Fast-paced and full of black humor, with loaded gazpacho serving as a key element. Introduced Almodovar to American audiences. In Spanish with English subtitles. 88m/C VHS, DVD, Wide. SP Carmen Maura, Fernando Guillen, Julieta Serrano, Maria Barranco, Rossy de Palma, Antonio Banderas;
Director:
Pedro Almodovar;
Writer:
Pedro Almodovar;
Writer:
Jose Luis Alcaine;
Cameo:
Bernardo Bonezzi. N.Y. Film Critics '88: Foreign Film.
