Official Competition

Opinion seems to be divided here about whether this is a comedy, possibly because the humour is pretty dark. Maybe some weren't laughing because they could see the jokes coming a mile off. But I still guffawed about half a dozen times, even if the portrayal of egotistical and vain actors was familiar and a little cliched. Possibly another reason some didn't laugh so much was on account of the robust, sometimes bracing humour which doesn't kow-tow to political correctness. Some laughed at the scene in which the elderly producer's daughter, cast to keep him on side and providing finance, is basically molested by each actor and finally ravished on the floor by Penelope Cruz, but I actually found it slightly shocking and unnecessary. There's also a lot of misogyny directed at Cruz by the warring male actors, although she does play several cruel tricks on them. So not 'light' but dark comedy, I would say. Great performances all round, I especially liked Oscar Martinez.

Good Almodovar Film.

Oh hang on its not one of his.

Could have fooled me.

I liked it. Pedro would be proud of his acolytes.

Good cinematography. The full face close ups are exactly like an Almodovar film

The mise en scene exactly like an Almodovar film.

The colour palette, the set design, the location choices, the humour, all exactly like an Almodovar film.

The casting...you know what.

All that being said, it's nice to watch an almost Almodovar film. Beats most other films made at the moment.

Come on, maybe the final joke of this film is the two directors are actually fictional characters, and really the director is Pedro Almodovar?

A very original film with subtle humour. The film makers are clearly afficionados of classic art films and their work is positively influenced by masters like Luis Bunuel and Jacques Tati.

All three main actors (Penelope Cruz, Antonio Banderas and Oscar Martinez) are at the top of their game. The script is brilliant and, without being didactic, is conducive to further meditation on what is acting, what is fiction and what is real. Although many films tackle the subject of "film within a film" showing the process behind the camera and the long preparations before actually shooting, "Official Competition" shows what actors' egos is really like (even the character played by Oscar Ramirez who pretends not to be interested by awards, secretly rehearses a speech in case he wins an Oscar...), and we get a glimpse into the director' s mind and vision and insistence on perfection, with doubt never too far away (brilliantly conveyed by Penelope Cruz).

A treat ! Not to be missed !

A wealthy businessman (José Luis Gómez) in search for fame and social prestige decides a new aim , to hire a famous filmmaker to help make a smash hit picture. To achieve this goal, to make a unique, groundbreaking film he hires the best of the best : A stellar team consisting of famous filmmaker , the bittered , weird Lola Cuevas (Penélope Cruz) and two well-known actors who boast not only an enormous talent , but also an even bigger ego: Hollywood star Félix Rivero (Antonio Banderas) and aging theater thespian Iván Torres (Oscar Martínez) . They're both legends, but not exactly the best of friends . Through a series of increasingly hilarious tests set by Lola, Félix and Iván find themselves entangled into discorcenting and usettling experiences .

A charming and sympathetic Dramedy about a troubled shooting that goes wrong . Argentines Cohn and Duprat direct this satire on the world of art and cinema starring three of the most recognized Spanish-speaking actors worldwide : Antonio Banderas , Penelope Cruz , Oscar Martínez . As in their previous films , the pair of directors addresses in this film issues such as limits in the world of art , hypocrisy , ego , and the prejudices that some artists have against others , issues that on this occasion revolve around the film process. A nice and interesting drama/black-comedy , in which two actors , directed by an extremely rare filmmaker , must confront not only each other, but also their own legacies and resulting in fateful , unpredictable consequences . This is a nice movie containing drama , humorous elements , irony and satirical events. Here stands out the terrific acting by this great trio starring : Penelope Cruz , Antonio Banderas and a great Argentinean actor , Oscar Martinez , playing perfectly a proud and really serious actor . Oscar Martinez is considered to be the most famous Argentine actor with Ricardo Darin, Rodolfo Ranni and Dario Grandinetti. Being well accompanied an attractive support cast , such as : José Luis Gómez as a billionaire businessman , Irene Escolar as his daughter and brief appearances from Manolo Solo , Pilar Castro , Koldo Olabarri , Juan Grandinetti , Melina Matthews , among others.

The motion picture was competently directed by Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn , they formerly made some decent films . As they have directed a dozen movies , with which they obtained more than thirty international awards, among which stand out The Artist (2008) , The Man Next Door (2009), The Distinguished Citizen (2016), My Masterpiece (2018) and Official Competition (2020). Their big hit was ¨El ciudadano ilustre¨ (2016) , it was No. 1 at the box office Argentine comedy of the year , getting submission of Argentina for the 'Best Foreign Language Film' category of the 89th Academy Awards in 2017 and won several prizes and nominations , such as : Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Argentina 2016 Winner Award of the Argentinean Academy Best Actor Oscar Martínez , Best Supporting Actor Dady Brieva , Best Screenplay - Original Andrés Duprat . While this Official Competitio (2021) getting a number of prizes and nominations , such as : Chicago Indie Critics Awards (CIC) 2023 Nominee Windie Best Foreign Language Film Jaume Roures ; Dublin Film Critics Circle Awards 2022 Nominee DFCC Best Screenplay Mariano Cohn ,Andrés Duprat ; Feroz Awards, ES 2023 Winner Feroz Award Best Film: Comedy ; Film Club's The Lost Weekend 2022 Winner Lost Weekend Award Best Supporting Actress Penélope Cruz ; Goya Awards 2023 Nominee Goya Best Cinematography Arnau Valls Colomer ; San Sebastián International Film Festival 2021 Nominee Sebastiane Award Best Film Mariano Cohn , Gastón Duprat; Spanish Actors Union 2022 Nominee Award of the Spanish Actors Union Best Actress in an International Production Penélope Cruz , among others.

This movie is marketed as black comedy (it could be blacker for my taste) but it is basically a vehicle for great actors to overact, making fun of their profession but also show facets of their craft (there are many ways to say "Good Day"). On the other hand the movie draws attention to some facets of filmmaking that is usually neglectet, e. G. the importance of how sound is recorded.

We've seen many films about filmmaking and art, and this is definitely not one of the worst of its kind.