Acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar is continuing his crossover into English-language filmmaking with an upcoming queer Western short film titled Strange Way of Life. Slated for a Cannes premiere, the short co-stars The Last of Us‘ Pedro Pascal and the Before trilogy’s Ethan Hawke as a rancher and a Sheriff, respectively.

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Described by Almodóvar as his “answer to Brokeback Mountain” (which he almost directed), here is everything we know about Strange Way of Life.

What is Strange Way of Life about?

Almodóvar has been fairly cryptic about the plot of his upcoming short film so far, elaborating only on its themes. We know from a statement the director released that Silva is visiting Sheriff Jake at Bitter Creek, 25 years after they worked together as hired gunmen. After celebrating their reunion, Silva reveals that the reason for his visit isn’t to muse about the past. The trailer tells us a woman has been killed, which might be why Silva is seeking the help of Jake.

Speaking on Dua Lipa’s At Your Service podcast, the Parallel Mothers director, whose oeuvre has always been concerned with the topics of sexuality and gender, said the short film explores masculinity “in a deep sense.” As a typically male genre, the crossover between the Western and Almodóvar’s style of storytelling is unique. The filmmaker teased that no Western has ever captured the kind of dialogue he wrote for the film, which marks his first ever in the genre.

Meanwhile, speaking to Out Magazine, leading man Pascal had nothing but great things to say about his experience working with the acclaimed director, touching on a lot of these same elements.

“He absolutely opened up an entire world of storytelling, color, culture, rebellion, and sexuality that was just absolutely intoxicating, dangerous, hilarious, heartbreaking, and encompassing the whole spectrum, but with such a signature style. It could have been anything that he asked me to do, and I would have done it without question.”

Strange Way of Life title meaning

The short film is titled after a Fado song by Portuguese singer Amália Rodrigues. The title Strange Way of Life is a direct translation of the song title “Estranha Forma de Vida,” and Almodóvar has said the track will open the film. The Oscar-winning director told IndieWire that the choice to include a Fado song in his short comes from the fact that “those songs are all very sad, and that is how these two main characters live.”

In a statement about the film shared by Variety, the director added that the song lyrics “suggest that there is no stranger existence than the one that is lived by turning your back on your own desires.” This tidbit helps paint a picture of the themes in Strange Way of Life and the dynamic between its two main characters.

All the cast and known characters in Strange Way of Life

Pedro Pascal is playing a rancher named Silva, while Ethan Hawke will be bringing his past lover Sheriff Jake to life. Portuguese actor José Candessa and Spanish actor Jason Fernández will be embodying the younger versions of Silva and Jake respectively, in flashbacks that show how they first connected as hired gunmen 25 years prior to the main events of the film.

Almodóvar described Silva as “someone solid, emotional, crafty, a cheat if necessary, warmhearted” in a profile Esquire did on Pedro Pascal, adding that the actor “played all those nuances with incredible ease.” “He can be adorably sentimental and hard as nails. He’s a great comic actor, and he can also be impenetrable if necessary,” the award-winning filmmaker said of his central player.

The cast also includes Elite‘s heartthrob Manu Ríos in an undisclosed character and the newcomer Daniel Rived as a deputy sheriff. George Steane plays Pedro Pascal’s son, Joe. Spanish acting veteran Pedro Casablanc, who has worked with Almodóvar in Parallel Mothers and Pain and Glory, and Sara Sálamo are also in the film. The cast is completed by Ohiana Cueto e Daniela Medina.

Strange Way of Life release date

Sony Pictures Classics will be distributing Strange Way of Life globally, except for the U.K., France, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Italy and Latin America, The Hollywood Reporter reports. According to the same publication, the short is scheduled for a Fall 2023 release, despite coming out as early as 26 May in Spain, following its Cannes premiere. MUBI has acquired the distribution rights for the film for Italy and Latin America, while Pathé will release it in the United Kingdom.