Bitter Christmas

In 2004, an ad director faces a turbulent Christmas weekend. In 2026, a filmmaker turns her story into a screenplay, blurring the lines between reality, fiction, and the people closest to him.

Bitter Christmas, Pedro Almodóvar

Elsa is a director who suddenly suffers from severe migraines and panic attacks. She feels progressively better with the support of her boyfriend, Beau, and her friend Patricia, who is struggling in her marriage. This storyline is actually the live re-enactment of a script being written by Raul, a famous film director eager to return to the big screen. Bitter Christmas (2026) is an ever-changing, emotive film that challenges the boundaries between fiction and pseudo-autobiographical reality, in Almodóvar’s iconic, and sensitive lens of depicting women’s stories.

★ ★ ★ 1/2

Release Date August 28th 2026
Director(s) Pedro Almodóvar
Written Pedro Almodóvar
Producer ‍Agustín Almodóvar, Bárbara Peiró, Diego Pajuelo‍ ‍ Starring Bárbara Lennie, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón Cinematography Pau Esteve Birba
Distributor Curzon Film
Runtime 111 minutes