An unbalanced but alluring former mental patient takes a porn star prisoner in the hopes of convincing her to marry him.An unbalanced but alluring former mental patient takes a porn star prisoner in the hopes of convincing her to marry him.An unbalanced but alluring former mental patient takes a porn star prisoner in the hopes of convincing her to marry him.
- Awards
- 8 wins & 19 nominations
Loles León
- Lola
- (as Loles Leon)
María Barranco
- Berta
- (as Maria Barranco)
Montse García Romeu
- Montse
- (as Montse G. Romeu)
Alberto Fernández
- Productor
- (as Alberto Fernandez)
José María Tasso
- Anciano Psiquiátrico
- (as Jose Maria Tasso)
Virginia Díez
- Bailarín Tango
- (as Virginia Diez)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe sex scene between Ricky (Antonio Banderas) and Marina (Victoria Abril) took nine takes to get right and about nine hours to film. Pedro Almodóvar chose to use the ninth and last take as, by that time, the two actors had worked themselves up into a sweat, making the scene appear to be even more authentic. Elia Kazan later remarked that he thought it was one of the best sex scenes in a film that he had ever witnessed.
- GoofsWhen Ricky accepts the offer to take Marina out to search for painkillers for her toothache, she puts on a tiny white dress that only goes down to the tops of her thighs and only just barely conceals her crotch and buttocks in order to cover her completely naked body underneath it. When they both return to Marina's apartment, she takes off the dress, but now she is naked except for a pair of white panties that were not there before.
Featured review
Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
As this film opens Ricky learns that he is to be released from the mental institution that he has been confined to for the last few years. Upon release he immediately sets about finding Marina, a woman he spent the night with after escaping a year previously. Marina is now a 'proper' actress but at the time she met Ricky she was a porn star with a drug problem. Ricky goes to the film set then follows her home; once inside her apartment he knocks her out and ties her up. When she awakens he tells her that it is his intention that she will fall in love with him.
I found this film to be a lot of fun; it is frequently very funny, occasionally very sexy and more than a little bit morally twisted! Victoria Abril and Antonia Banderas are really solid as Marina and Ricky making it is easy to believe their characters' rather different relationship. Early on there is a sense of menace as Ricky kidnaps and threatens Marina, this however is tempered by various more humorous elements such as them needing to get medication for her toothache and Ricky's disguises in a couple of scenes. The way the story is filmed is more in the way of a romantic comedy then anything menacing; lots of bright colours and an airy apartment rather than subdued tones and some stark grey cellar. Some may find the ending rather offensive but if you don't take the film too seriously it is easy to accept and enjoy. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to anybody looking for a 'rom-com' with a twist; it won't be for everybody though thanks to the way our two leads get together.
These comments are based on watching the film in Spanish with English subtitles.
I found this film to be a lot of fun; it is frequently very funny, occasionally very sexy and more than a little bit morally twisted! Victoria Abril and Antonia Banderas are really solid as Marina and Ricky making it is easy to believe their characters' rather different relationship. Early on there is a sense of menace as Ricky kidnaps and threatens Marina, this however is tempered by various more humorous elements such as them needing to get medication for her toothache and Ricky's disguises in a couple of scenes. The way the story is filmed is more in the way of a romantic comedy then anything menacing; lots of bright colours and an airy apartment rather than subdued tones and some stark grey cellar. Some may find the ending rather offensive but if you don't take the film too seriously it is easy to accept and enjoy. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to anybody looking for a 'rom-com' with a twist; it won't be for everybody though thanks to the way our two leads get together.
These comments are based on watching the film in Spanish with English subtitles.
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $4,087,361
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $65,299
- May 6, 1990
- Gross worldwide
- $4,089,145
- Runtime1 hour 41 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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