Almejas y mejillones (2002, Spain and Argentina)

Rolando (Jorge Sanz) is a marine biologist who specialises in the sexual behaviour of mussels. He rents a house in Tenerife -- and we see some fabulous helicopter views of that rocky island -- to pursue his investigations.

When he arrives he finds Paula is already living there; there has been a mix-up on the part of the owner. In fact Paula takes Rolando for a robber, and is only narrowly dissuaded from shooting him. But the house is a mess, and Rolando is a very orderly young man. Nonetheless, he soon falls in love with Paula, despite their differences. Yet we witness a scene in which Paula falls out with her lesbian girlfriend, so we know some complications are ahead. A rather camp gay man, Fredy, is also a frequent visitor at the house.

In fact Rolando finds a business card for a local club, and goes there in the evening. But it's a gay club, and a drag performer -- Fredy from the house -- is in full song. Paula is there too, and they have an altercation.

Nonetheless, they patch it up back at the house, and little by little romantic feelings take over. Rolando really likes her, and she tries hard to be a conventional housewife. But it isn't working, and after another visit to the drag club, Rolando flies out, we assume to go back to academic life. Paula makes the best of it, and obviously is yearning after him.

After a while, a strange woman arrives at the club, while Paula is there. But we can see at once that it is Rolando, who has had a rather radical makeover at the very least. She introduces herself as Diana. But Paula isn't impressed, and rejects him.

Fredy gives Diana a lift, and they drive out into the desert. Fredy has a bottle of whisky, which they now drink; as the alcohol loosens tongues, it emerges that Rolando hasn't merely had a makeover, he has had irrevocable surgery.

Diana now goes back to the house and lets herself in; Paula is there and her girlfriend doesn't like the fact that someone another female lives there, so there is an argument and she flounces out. Diana teases Paula, including paying a man to pretend to be her boyfriend, but fails to win her over.

But all the teasing and taunting has been counter-productive. Paula packs her bags, and is leaving; in a tearful moment, she says that she loved Rolando, and wanted him as a man. She leaves for the airport, and Diana/Rolando is desolate, having apparently taken irrevocable steps to get her love, and messed it up. However, the film is going to end in a few minutes, and we are sure there will be a happy ending. Well, there is, and everything is not what it seems, and everyone lives happily ever after.

The second half of the film, from when Antonio flies out, is really just too improbable to be true, and the contrived happy ending is weak. The Argentine director, Marcos Carnevale, could have got a better script.

The title means Clams and Mussels. Mussels are hermaphrodites sexually, so the title is an oblique reference to this.

HF June 2004

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