This might be the first movie from Pedro Almodóvar that left me feeling let down. It isn’t poorly constructed; he simply doesn’t seem capable of making something unattractive, and The Room Next Door has his characteristic striking visuals, a lovely color scheme, and careful attention to detail. However, it didn't possess the intense emotional exploration we generally expect from him. Considering his career was built on portraying unfiltered feelings, on characters whose emotions are raw and unrestrained, this one felt held back, almost detached. The story centers on Ingrid (Julianne Moore) and Martha (Tilda Swinton), two friends who reunite after a long separation when Martha, facing terminal cancer, asks Ingrid to stay in the room next door while she decides how to end her life. It's Almodóvar’s initial film shot in English, adapted from Sigrid Nunez's novel What Are You Going Through, and it deals with a theme that other films have addressed with greater immediacy: La Mar Dentro featuring Javier Bardem's exceptional performance, Amour (2012), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, even Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby which introduced this question near its conclusion. Those movies all had something missing from this one: they conveyed the significance of that decision, the desperation or the clarity or the love that leads someone to choose death over continued pain. Moore and Swinton were truly remarkable in their roles. They brought intelligence, subtlety, and a profound understanding of these women to each scene. The issue isn't with their acting; it’s that the movie surrounding them doesn't quite live up to their dedication. Almodóvar seems more focused on appearances than inner substance here, more preoccupied with how things appear rather than how they feel. I imagine we will see additional films exploring end-of-life choices as baby boomers reach an age where these questions become relevant; that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since these conversations are important. But when Almodóvar, of all people, directs a film about death and friendship that feels emotionally subdued, it suggests something has gone wrong. It's a gorgeous movie that kept me at a distance when I was hoping to be deeply affected.

Source on TMDB