Just What Is This Odd, Disturbing Role Almodovar Has Lined Up For Penelope Cruz?

As film ick reported in early December, Penelope Cruz and Pedro Almodovar are to reteam for the director's next movie, a revenge drama. What wasn't known at the time - and which I'm hearing now, as Variety announce the project formally and the world lights up with discussion of it's plot and characters - is just what role Ms. Cruz is to play.

This one might be quite a challenge for her. Apparently, the film centres on the cruel tactics of a plastic surgeon who avenges his daughter's rape. Read any further and there are spoilers.

I'm told that Cruz will not be playing the daughter. Nope, she will be playing a man who has raped the daughter. So, I probably don't need to explain what form the surgeon's twisted revenge comes in. I think the true identity of Eve is kept secret for some time and the gender-reallignment in Eve's past is only revealed later.

If I understand correctly, the poor daughter is now an inmate at a mental assylum, and pops up in just a small handful of scenes. Her true identity is kept under wraps for a good long time too, I believe.

For a while this film was being referred to as Tarantula, I believe, and now it will most likely take the English title The Skin I Live In. The meaning of the first title isn't so obvious, but I think we can all see how the second is relevant.