The Human Voice

Name: The Human Voice
Genre: Drama, Short
Released: March 12, 2021
Duration: 30 min
Rating: 88
Cast: Tilda Swinton

2021

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 17 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 25 Ratings

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6.7

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6.7	Your Score
6.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 25 Ratings

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The Human Voice

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Movie Details & Credits

Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: March 12, 2021 | Not Rated

Starring: Tilda Swinton

Summary: A woman watches time passing next to the suitcases of her ex-lover (who is supposed to come pick them up, but never arrives) and a restless dog who doesn’t understand that his master has abandoned him.

Director: Pedro Almodóvar

Genre(s): Drama, Short

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 30 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Alonso Duralde

Sep 29, 2020

This small package stands alongside the exemplary feature-length work in one of this generation’s foremost filmographies. Read full review

100

Ty Burr

Mar 24, 2021

The Human Voice is a banquet disguised as a light lunch, heady with flavors; you come away blissfully sated and hungry for more. Read full review

100

Lorry Kikta

Aug 23, 2021

Please seek out The Human Voice as soon as you can. It is a short, shockingly beautiful exploration of the stages of abandonment. Read full review

Natalia Keogan

Oct 7, 2020

Instead of acting as a short, satisfying jaunt through Almodóvar’s aesthetic, The Human Voice is an exercise in deconstructing the very tenets the filmmaker has propped himself on throughout the entirety of his career. Read full review

The Telegraph Robbie Collin

May 20, 2021

This is his and Swinton’s first film together: in fact, it is the Spanish master’s first English-language production. But the two are an obviously good creative match, each one well-versed in the interplay of depth and surface, and capable of switching moods from ripe to heartfelt in a blink. Read full review

Huw Oliver

Mar 31, 2021

The Human Voice is the Spanish director’s first English-language film and you’ll inevitably go away yearning for more as soon as the half hour is up. Read full review

Cassie da Costa

Mar 16, 2021

The Human Voice’s images tend to call out in vain; not an utterance is heard. They are symbols suspended in time and space, indicators of something that doesn’t seem to matter very much. Read full review

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User Reviews

javierp

Jun 5, 2022

It was great to see Almodóvar working with international star Tilda Swinton. He has the ability to create an atmosphere where a single monologue feels like a whole conversation, all that without losing his essence, artistry and imaginary. Really admirable piece of work.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

bertobellamy

Jan 4, 2023

Tilda Swinton and Pedro Almodóvar are a match made in heaven. The production design is exquisite. Would love to see a feature film about this.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

ChanekeCholo

Jan 19, 2022

A beautifully presented self-reflective monologue about the loneliness and the depression, and how to deal with it.
The performance of Tilda Swinton is excellent as always and the directing together with the production design, the costume design and the cinematography reminds me of Lars VonA beautifully presented self-reflective monologue about the loneliness and the depression, and how to deal with it.
The performance of Tilda Swinton is excellent as always and the directing together with the production design, the costume design and the cinematography reminds me of Lars Von Trier's Dogville in a good way.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

JLuis_001

May 16, 2021

Is Almodóvar overrated? My opinion is yes.

But in the face of certain criticisms that this short-film has received, it surprises me, because beyond aesthetics, this is an Almodóvar who feels measured.

And although all his tone is present, the show here is Tilda, and she does not disappoint.

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

DawdlingPoet

Jan 8, 2022

This is a short 'film' (half an hour long) which is the director's English language debut. Tilda Swinton gives a good performance as the unnamed main characxter, the lady who we hear discussing things via a phone call in which we can't hear the other person. It's very much an example ofThis is a short 'film' (half an hour long) which is the director's English language debut. Tilda Swinton gives a good performance as the unnamed main characxter, the lady who we hear discussing things via a phone call in which we can't hear the other person. It's very much an example of showing things from the one persons perspective. It shows Tilda's acting range quite well - it almost surprised me how strongly emotional she becomes, given her composure at the start. Its a curious character based short film - as ever in Almodovar's films, colour plays a particular role in this title. I couldn't not notice the brightish colours present in Tilda's costumes, the home furnishings and so on. This is a slightly quirky and perhaps curious watch, not a bad one, a thoughtful film somewhat that does touch on suicide, so if suicide or self harm triggers you, then your best avoiding this but otherwise I'd recommend it, yes.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

ahmedaiman1999

May 17, 2021

One thing I noticed, and adored, about Almodóvar, is that despite his unequivocal propensity for incorporating comedy with melodrama, there's no way his films could come across as either silly or overly sentimental. For his stories are laced with considerable nuance. His Women on the VergeOne thing I noticed, and adored, about Almodóvar, is that despite his unequivocal propensity for incorporating comedy with melodrama, there's no way his films could come across as either silly or overly sentimental. For his stories are laced with considerable nuance. His Women on the Verge on a Nervous Breakdown, which is also based on Jean Cocteau's play, "La voix humaine" as this short is, maintains an incremental humorous tone so much so it could be adequately described, by its end, as a farce. Yet, as we see Pepa trying to figure out why her lover dumped her without an explanation, Almodóvar delves into Pepa's psyche with great subtlety that's apt for her precarious state. It's a story with no shortage of details. That's why I thought The Human Voice would benefit greatly from the concentrated nature of short films. Our unnamed protagonist's waiting for three days for her lover to come in a last chance to see him has filled her with rage. A vindictive rage almost identical to that of The Bride in Kill Bill, but she still loves him. So she acts out like a maniac: stabbing one of her lover’s suits with an axe in a harmless cathartic release. She wouldn't dare to actually hurt him; she still loves him. Therefore, she's so vulnerable. Over the course of her conversation with his lover, her seemingly stable and wry demeanour gradually crumbles, exposing both her helplessness and her futile undirected rage. Almodóvar brilliantly highlights such contradiction by placing her in her exuberantly furnished, sumptuously colored apartment that's constructed on a soundstage. As she grows more desperate, she begins to lose control. Finally, she decides to free herself from the submissive woman she was, and put an end to their toxic relationship — after all, her love made her too fragile and delicate to venture to turn the tables on him as Alma did on Reynolds in Phantom Thread. The thing is, I didn't feel that she loves him. What's baffling is that I can't put my finger on why exactly I feel so, but it's likely due to the stagy feel this film has. It is a showcase of Tilda Swinton's thespian prowess, but, at times, her monologue comes off rather like a soliloquy — like there's no one on the other side of the phone line. Regardless, The Human Voice is an eye-popping, exquisitely-made feminist work with witty sarcastic undertones.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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