In “All About My Mother,” much of the movie’s plot stems from Manuela’s decision to track down Lola, a transgender woman and Esteban’s father. In contrast, “Bad Education” features a transgender woman who is a cynical junkie and “ The Skin I Live In” presents a transgender woman who was forcibly transitioned. But even within Almodóvar films, Agrado is special in terms of how well-adjusted and sympathetic she is. You would be hard-pressed to find another filmmaker who has so consistently written transgender characters into his films and who has cast transgender actors, some of whom have even played cisgender female characters. Nearly all of Almodóvar’s films have centered queerness in their stories, but “All About My Mother” stands out with regards to its representation of transgender women via the character of Agrado. While queer camp was never likely to be lauded by the mainstream film world, dramas about queer people-“ Philadelphia,” “ Brokeback Mountain,” “Boys Don’t Cry,” “ Moonlight”-have come a long way. These are also, perhaps not coincidentally, the director’s most awarded films, which suggests that his previous works were considered too niche (read: too queer) and too campy, and “not weighty enough” to garner awards nominations. But here and in Roth's delicate hands, Manuela is an emblem of sacrifice, nearly crippled by grief.” Indeed, most of the films Almodóvar has made after “All About My Mother”-“Talk To Her,” “ Bad Education,” “ Volver”-have been more sincerely dramatic. New York Times critic Wesley Morris, then writing for the San Francisco Examiner, wrote, “Before, with Almodóvar, a sudden tragedy like Esteban's death would have weakened Manuela, depraved her. Film critics writing two decades ago noticed this shift in the tone of Almodóvar’s work.
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