#FIRSTLOOK: “BITTER CHRISTMAS”

Bárbara Lennie stars in Pedro Almodóvar’s BITTER CHRISTMAS, a metafictional drama that weaves together two parallel stories, exploring the blurred boundaries between fact and fiction. The film had its North American premiere at TIFF in September.

In December 2004, we meet advertising director Elsa (Bárbara Lennie) over the course of a long December weekend. In 2026, we meet Raúl (Leonardo Sbaraglia), a screenwriter and director struggling to break out of a prolonged creative drought. As he begins writing a new screenplay, it soon becomes clear that his story is based on Elsa, her boyfriend Bonifacio (Patrick Criado), and her friends Patricia (Victoria Luengo) and Natalia (Milena Smit).

As the two narratives unfold, Elsa emerges as somewhat of an alter ego for Raúl, who turns to autofiction whilst attempting to break through his creative impasse. Looking inward for inspiration, he also draws on the lives of those closest to him, including his partner (Quim Gutiérrez) and assistant (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón), further blurring the line between personal lives and fiction.

Featuring Almodóvar’s signature visual style with vibrant colours and mid-century modern production design, BITTER CHRISTMAS immerses audiences in a layered exploration of reality, fiction, and the creative process. The film also features a score by longtime collaborator Alberto Iglesias, which won the Cannes Soundtrack Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

The film reunites Almodóvar with several actors from his previous works, including Bárbara Lennie (THE SKIN I LIVE IN), Leonardo Sbaraglia (PAIN AND GLORY), Aitana Sánchez-Gijón and Milena Smit (PARALLEL MOTHERS), and Victoria Luengo (THE ROOM NEXT DOOR). A two-time Academy Award winner, Almodóvar won Best Foreign Language Film for ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER and Best Original Screenplay for TALK TO HER.

BITTER CHRISTMAS will be released in Canadian theatres by Mongrel Media. It opens in Toronto & Vancouver November 20, 2026 additional cities November 27, 2026.