The eventual sex scene between Ricki and his captive Marina one of the few sequences where Marina is not tied up or restrained, and one of the only sequences which directly relates to masochism. The image of a middle-aged man paralysed from the waist down hopelessly leering over young actresses, who have no interest in him whatsoever, is the ultimate image of impotence. He stares constantly at Marina and is shown, later, watching her pornographic films lecherously. He is seen to outwardly ‘admire’ and gaze upon all the women on the set, making inappropriate comments on Lola’s physique. Another way in which males are shown to be redundant in some way, is the wheelchair bound director, Maximo.
Women, such as the director and the vendor in the sweet shop, look at him in a lustful manner and as a sexual object and Ricki uses this to his advantage. Paul Smith confirms this writing, “Regressive and elemental, Ricki is…placed in the feminine position of exchanging his body for material favours.” Similarly, throughout the first few scenes of the film, Ricki is the subject of the desiring gaze. Īt the beginning of Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, Ricki is shown to use his body and sex almost as a currency as he ‘thanks’ the director by sleeping with her in her office. This essay will explore how the director presents gender and alternative sexualities throughout his films through the analysis of the films Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!, Matador and Bad Education. Transgressive lifestyles and desire are key to the main themes of Almodovar’s oeuvre. The films of Pedro Almodovar are a smorgasbord of stylistic settings, colourful characters and unusual plotlines.
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