Pedro Almodóvar gives 'Broken Hugs'

Queer auteur Pedro Almodóvar announced his latest project on Tuesday, a "four-way tale of amour-fou [crazy love], shot in the style of ‘50s American film noir at its most hard-boiled," entitled Los Abrazos Rotos (The Broken Hugs).

Continuing the director’s tradition of recycling his favorite actors from film to film, Abrazos will star current Almodóvar muse, Penélope Cruz, who gave a career-best performance in the director's previous film, the brilliant Volver. The rest of the main cast will be rounded out by Almodóvar regulars Blanca Portillo (Volver) and Lluis Homar (Bad Education).

Almodóvar was fairly tight-lipped about the plot of the film, saying only that it is set in the ‘90s and current day and will explore the themes of "fate, the mystery of creation, guilt, unscrupulous power, the eternal search of fathers for sons, and sons for fathers". He elaborated for The Hollywood Reporter by stating that "this won’t be a comedy, but humor will be present." Ya know, I can't stand it when directors just can’t shut up about a project and give everything away.

Almodóvar is currently putting the finishing touches on the script, which is apparently his longest ever. Pre-production on Los Abrazos Rotos is set to begin at the start of the new year.

Just to refresh your memory, I’ve included a few photos of the confirmed cast, as well as a shot of Almodóvar with the ensemble of Volver.