Bitter Christmas

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Bitter Christmas
Theatrical release poster
SpanishAmarga Navidad
Directed byPedro Almodóvar
Written byPedro Almodóvar
Produced byAgustín Almodóvar
Starring
CinematographyPau Esteve Birba
Edited byTeresa Font
Music byAlberto Iglesias
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
  • 20 March 2026 (2026-03-20)
Running time
111 minutes
CountrySpain
LanguageSpanish
Box office$3.9 million

Bitter Christmas (Spanish: Amarga Navidad) is a 2026 Spanish tragicomedy film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar. It stars Bárbara Lennie and Leonardo Sbaraglia alongside Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Victoria Luengo, Patrick Criado, Milena Smit, and Quim Gutiérrez. It incorporates elements of autofiction.

The film was released theatrically in Spain on 20 March 2026 by Warner Bros. Pictures, and subsequently had its international premiere on 19 May 2026 at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, where Alberto Iglesias won the Cannes Soundtrack Award.

Premise

After her mother dies, commercial director Elsa immerses herself in her work to cope. When a migraine forces her to take a break, she decides to travel to Lanzarote during the 2004 Constitution Day long weekend with her friend Patricia while her boyfriend (stripper and fireman Bonifacio) stays in Madrid. To resume her creative writing, she vampirises the personal miseries of her close friends. In a timeline set in 2025, the plot explores how filmmaker Raúl is writing a script which turns out to be the story of Elsa, Raúl's alter ego. Raúl is delving into autofiction to overcome a creativity block, and is influenced by his own life, his boyfriend Santi and his assistant Mónica.[1][2][3][4]

Cast

Production

In an interview to IndieWire published in October 2024, Almodóvar pitched Bitter Christmas as "a tragic comedy about gender".[9] In May 2025, Victoria Luengo and Patrick Criado were reported to have been cast.[10] Filming began on 9 June 2025,[11] with Pau Esteve Birba serving as cinematographer.[12] Additional cast members including Bárbara Lennie, Quim Gutiérrez, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Milena Smit, and Aitana Sánchez-Gijón were subsequently reported.[13] The film is an El Deseo production and it had the collaboration of Movistar Plus+.[13] Shooting wrapped on 12 August 2025 in Lanzarote.[6] Shooting locations also included Madrid.[6] Teresa Font took over film editing during post-production.[14]

Almodóvar billed Bitter Christmas as "the film where I've been cruelest with myself".[15][16]

Release

Warner Bros. Pictures released Bitter Christmas in Spanish theatres on 20 March 2026.[17][18][19] It will later be released on streamer Movistar Plus+.[18] Curzon acquired distribution rights for the United Kingdom and Ireland,[20] scheduling a 28 August 2026 theatrical release.[21] In August 2025, Sony Pictures Classics, Almodóvar's recurring North American distributor, acquired distribution rights to the film in that territory.[14]

The film had its international premiere at the main competition of the 79th Cannes Film Festival on 19 May 2026,[22] where it will compete for the Palme d'Or and won the Cannes Soundtrack Award.[23][24] Pathé handled French distribution, programming a 20 May 2026 rollout in French theatres.[25] Warner Bros. also took over Italian, Mexican, Argentine, and Brazilian distribution, respectively scheduling a 21 May 2026 in Italy and 28 May 2026 theatrical release in Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil.[26][27][28][29] Falcon Pictures acquired Indonesian rights to the film.[30]

Reception

Box office

Bitter Christmas opened to a €728,038 (96,852 admissions) debut weekend at the domestic box office in Spain, posting a slightly better performance than Almodóvar's Parallel Mothers (2021) and The Room Next Door (2024).[31] By its second weekend, it had grossed around €1.6 million.[32] It added €120,400 in its fourth weekend to a total gross of around €2.3 million.[33][34] By 1 June 2026, its worldwide gross revenue was $3.9 million.[35]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 44 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.3/10.[36]

Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 69 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[37]

First reactions to the film were "largely positive" but "hardly unanimous", with fans lauding the "brutal honesty" while detractors resented the lack of "emotional impact".[16]

Laura Pérez of Fotogramas rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, highlighting the "brutal honesty of its director" as the best thing about it.[4] Pepa Blanes of Cadena SER assessed that the film "features a remarkable and original structure", otherwise considering that Almodóvar has laid his soul bare, almost more so than in Pain and Glory.[38] Andrea G. Bermejo of Cinemanía rated the film 4½ out of 5 stars, declaring it "a self-portrait of brutal honesty".[3]

Raquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas gave the film 68 points, highlighting Sánchez Gijón's character, and how, through her, the director "demonstrates a remarkable degree of self-awareness", while also missing in the film "[Almodovár's] raw passion of yesteryear", as well as a bit more of a sense of humour.[39] Luis Martínez of El Mundo gave the film a 5-star rating, accepting it as a masterpiece insofar masterpiece be defined as a "synonym for risk and freedom, and as another way of describing something new".[40] Manuel J. Lombardo of Diario de Sevilla gave the film a 2-star rating, lamenting that "everything worked and flowed much better" in Pain and Glory.[41]

J. Picatoste Verdejo of Mondo Sonoro rated the film 6 out of 10 stars, lamenting that the film lapses into navel-gazing manierism through a narrative game that is both risky and botched.[42] Carlos Reviriego of El Cultural rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, wondering which other film questions itself as clearly and vehemently as Bitter Christmas does through Sánchez-Gijón's character in a "memorable" final stretch.[43] Marta Medina del Valle of El Confidencial rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, describing it as a derivative film, delighting as it elaborates in its musical performances, but which occasionally loses its way in self-indulgence when it comes to the self-portrait.[44]

Quim Casas of El Periódico de Catalunya rated the film a 4-star rating, finding a "diaphanous, precise, serene" Almodóvar in the film.[45] Alfonso Rivera of Cineuropa lamented that a self-absorbed Almódovar "appears to have lost the ability to create work that is interesting, fresh, moving and, crucially, entertaining".[46] Carlos Boyero of El País decried the film as "yet another display of design in which the storm of emotions also seems contrived".[47] Jonathan Holland of ScreenDaily billed the film as "multi-layered, cunningly crafted, melodramatic to a fault and interestingly unseasonal", but featuring "such an inward-looking approach" that the characters' emotions "seem to unspool in a hermetically sealed bubble".[48]

International reviews were generally respectful for the film, although they were not particularly thrilled by it.[49] David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film a 'B' rating, considering the film as "self-flagellating to the extreme but never the least bit apologetic", entailing an instance of "I yam what I yam autofiction at its finest".[50] Stephanie Zacharek of Time assessed that while the film "may not be as thoughtful or deep as it strives to be", "it's hard to get enough of the too-muchness of Almodóvar".[51] Gaël Golhen of Première rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, deeming it to be "less pleasant but more honest [than Pain and Glory]. And almost greater".[52]

Diego Brodersen of Página|12 gave the film a 8-point score, writing that it is in the third act "when emotion surges forth with intensity and once again puts the creator's place in the world around them and their connection with those closest to them under strain".[53] Alejandro Lingenti of La Nación gave the film 4 out of 5 stars ('very good'), considering that the story unfolds into "in a sophisticated narrative device" "for rethinking artistic appropriation, emotional vampirism and the ethics of autofiction".[29]

Alison Willmore of Vulture pointed out that everything interesting going on in the film happens in the last act, tentatively assessing that what "Almodóvar pulls off in the end makes the [otherwise difficult to watch] rest of the film worthwhile, but only barely".[54] Summing the film as 'More pain, less glory', David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter considered it "a customarily elegant exercise", "intricately structured" yet, staying aloof for the audience, "compelling but seldom affecting".[7]

See also

References

  1. Rebolledo, Matías G. (10 June 2025). "Pedro Almodóvar rueda 'Amarga Navidad' junto a Bárbara Lennie, Victoria Luengo y Patrick Criado". Kinótico (in Spanish).
  2. Úbeda-Portugués, Alberto (16 March 2026). "Los estrenos del 20 de marzo. 'Amarga Navidad'. Vida imaginada". Aisge.
  3. Bermejo, Andrea G. (18 March 2026). "Crítica de 'Amarga Navidad': el nuevo autorretrato honesto de Almodóvar, un yonqui del cine". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
  4. Pérez, Laura (17 March 2026). "Crítica de 'Amarga Navidad', la nueva película de Pedro Almodóvar: "El mayor auto confesional de este director"". Fotogramas.
  5. Belinchón, Gregorio (10 June 2025). "Bárbara Lennie, Victoria Luengo y Patrick Criado protagonizan 'Amarga Navidad', el nuevo filme de Pedro Almodóvar". El País.
  6. Meseguer, Astrid. "Almodóvar finaliza el rodaje de 'Amarga Navidad' entre besos, abrazos y ramos de flores". La Vanguardia.
  7. Rooney, David (19 May 2026). "'Bitter Christmas' Review: Pedro Almodóvar's Elegant Rumination on Art and Ethics Is Intensely Personal but Emotionally Unyielding". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 6 June 2026.
  8. "Almodóvar, sobre el debut de Amaia: "En esa escena y en esa canción está el corazón de la película para mí"". Diario de Navarra. 13 March 2026.
  9. Thompson, Anne (3 October 2024). "'The Room Next Door': How Pedro Almodóvar Wrangled Formal Spanish Into His First English-Language Feature". IndieWire.
  10. "Pedro Almodóvar: desvelamos los primeros nombres (y más datos) de la nueva película que va a empezar a rodar". ¡Hola!. 7 May 2025.
  11. "Pedro Almodóvar comenzó el rodaje de su nueva película, «Amarga Navidad»". GPS Audiovisual. 9 June 2025.
  12. "Comienza el rodaje de 'Amarga Navidad', la nueva película de Pedro Almodóvar". Camera & Light Mag. 10 June 2025.
  13. Silvestre, Juan (10 June 2025). "'Amarga Navidad': cuándo se estrena, reparto, sinopsis y tráiler de la nueva película de Pedro Almodóvar". Fotogramas.
  14. McGowan, Andrew (26 August 2025). "Sony Pictures Classics Acquires North American Rights to Pedro Almodóvar's 'Bitter Christmas'". Variety. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
  15. Jiménez, Montevirgen (17 March 2026). "Pedro Almodóvar presenta su nueva película, 'Amarga Navidad': "He disfrutado poniéndome en la picota"". Diez Minutos.
  16. Hopewell, John (6 April 2026). "Pedro Almodovar's Potential Cannes Contender 'Bitter Christmas' Draws Upbeat Reviews in Spain". Variety.
  17. Lang, Jamie (10 June 2026). "Pedro Almodóvar's Next Film 'Bitter Christmas' Unveiled by Movistar Plus+". Variety.
  18. Bergeson, Samantha (10 June 2025). "Pedro Almodóvar's Next Movie 'Bitter Christmas' Set for Spanish Theaters and Streamer Movistar Plus+". IndieWire.
  19. "Calendario de estrenos | 20 de octubre". Warner Bros. (in Spanish). 20 October 2025. Retrieved 21 October 2025.
  20. Tabbara, Mona (11 June 2025). "Pedro Almodóvar's 'Bitter Christmas' sells to UK-Ireland". ScreenDaily.
  21. Dalton, Ben (30 May 2026). "UK-Ireland film cinema release dates: latest updates for 2026". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  22. "The Screenings Guide of the 79th Festival de Cannes". Festival de Cannes. 7 May 2026. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  23. "Cannes Film Festival 2026: The Cannes Soundtrack Award shared by two films". www.sortiraparis.com. Retrieved 24 May 2026.
  24. Dams, Tim; Parfitt, Orlando (9 April 2026). "Cannes Film Festival unveils 2026 Official Selection". ScreenDaily.
  25. Orozco, Edouard (20 April 2026). "Pedro Almodóvar fait son Autofiction : bande-annonce du film en compétition à Cannes". Première (in French). Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  26. Hernández, Liz (26 January 2026). "Ya hay fecha para México: cuándo se estrena 'Amarga Navidad', la cinta que rompe la sequía de Almodóvar en español". Sensacine.
  27. Pratelli, Maurizio (20 May 2026). "Da giovedì al cinema, un grande film ogni settimana: Almodóvar torna con marga Navidad". QuiComo (in Italian). Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  28. Fernandes, Felipe (22 May 2026). "Almodóvar pensa os limites da criação em 'Natal Amargo', filme 'truncado' e pouco cativante". Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 23 May 2026.
  29. Lingenti, Alejandro (28 May 2026). "Amarga Navidad: Almodóvar se desnuda en una película honesta y sofisticada". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  30. Wong, Silvia (29 May 2026). "Indonesia's Falcon Pictures swoops on 12 Cannes Competition films". ScreenDaily. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  31. "La taquilla se dispara en España con el fenómeno Torrente y el estreno de 'Amarga Navidad'". EFE. 23 March 2026.
  32. Rull, Carles (31 March 2026). "'Torrente presidente' supera los 20 millones de taquilla y 'Proyecto Salvación' logra un buen debut". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
  33. Sequera Canora, David (16 April 2026). "Más de un millón de espectadores, de nuevo en el segundo fin de semana de abril a pesar de la caída de la taquilla del 16,5 por ciento". Audiovisual451.
  34. Sequera Canora, David (8 May 2026). "Un Cannes histórico para el cine español, que tampoco pierde el paso en el Marché du Film 2026". Audiovisual451.
  35. "Bitter Christmas". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 1 June 2026.
  36. "Bitter Christmas". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 6 June 2026.
  37. "Bitter Christmas". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  38. Blanes, Pepa (18 March 2026). "Crítica de 'Amarga Navidad' | Almodóvar se encomienda a la autoficción en una refinada e inolvidable película sobre la moral de los autores". Cadena SER.
  39. Hernández Luján, Raquel (18 March 2026). "Crítica de Amarga Navidad: Almodóvar cierra un díptico con Dolor y gloria experimentando con los límites de la verdad". HobbyConsolas.
  40. Martínez, Luis (19 March 2026). "Amarga Navidad: Almodóvar y las razones, que son emociones, de una obra maestra (*****)". El Mundo.
  41. Lombardo, Manuel J. (20 March 2026). "Almodóvar devorado por sí mismo". Diario de Sevilla. Grupo Joly.
  42. Picatoste Verdejo, J. (20 March 2026). "Crítica de "Amarga Navidad", la nueva película de Pedro Almodovar". Mondo Sonoro.
  43. Reviriego, Carlos (20 March 2026). "Crítica de 'Amarga Navidad': Almodóvar entrega un lúcido y vehemente autorretrato de la experiencia creativa". El Cultural – via El Español.
  44. Medina del Valle, Marta (20 March 2026). "'Amarga Navidad': el drama de Almodóvar contra el poderío taquillero de Torrente". El Confidencial.
  45. Casas, Quim (19 March 2026). "Crítica de 'Amarga Navidad': Almodóvar ofrece otra vuelta de tuerca sobre la realidad y la ficción en un melodrama preciso y sereno". El Periódico de Catalunya. Prensa Ibérica.
  46. Rivera, Alfonso (19 March 2026). "Review: Bitter Christmas". Cineuropa.
  47. Boyero, Carlos (22 March 2026). "'Amarga Navidad': hasta los sentimientos son de diseño. Allá ustedes". El País.
  48. Holland, Jonathan (23 March 2026). "'Bitter Christmas' review: Pedro Almodóvar muses on the creative process in personal, messy drama". ScreenDaily.
  49. Belinchón, Gregorio (20 May 2026). "Pedro Almodóvar, en Cannes: "Estoy harto de mí mismo. Estoy buscando alguien con quien escribir, que me traiga nuevos mundos"". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  50. Ehrlich, David (May 2026). "'Bitter Christmas' Review: Almodóvar Returns with a Fun and Twisty Meta-Drama". IndieWire. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  51. Zacharek, Stephanie (19 May 2026). "In Pedro Almodovar's Bitter Christmas, the Ideas Feel Familiar But the Packaging Is as Pleasing as Ever". Time. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  52. Golhem, Gaël (20 May 2026). "Première a beaucoup aime. Autofiction ★★★★☆". Première (in French). Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  53. Brodersen, Diego (28 May 2026). ""Amarga Navidad": el acto creativo como exorcismo personal". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  54. Willmore, Alison (20 May 2026). "Pedro Almodóvar's Lacerating Self-Portrait Is a Difficult Watch". Vulture. Retrieved 30 May 2026.