Film - Hable Con Ella

Film - Hable Con Ella

SEXUAL THEMES in HABLE CON ELLA

On the surface, Hable Con Ella (2002) is about the friendship between Benigno and Marco, two strangers whose lives cross over similar but coincidental circumstances that bring them to the same place in their lives. On a slightly deeper level, Marco's guilt over his belief that his attention precipitated the lapse in concentration on the part of Lydia that caused her injury may relate to his guilt over possibly having developed an interest in a woman who was still involved in a prior relationship at the time. However, the most interesting element of the film, particularly from the perspective of human sexuality, is the concept of the superficiality of male infatuation.

Certainly, both men and women prefer physically attractive partners and are more likely to develop a romantic interest in individuals who are comparatively attractive.

Likewise, physical attractiveness is subjective and dependent on individual preference.

Nevertheless, whereas women generally develop romantic infatuation only comparatively gradually, men often experience something much closer to love based purely on sight.

Irrespective of whether so-called love at first sight ever genuinely occurs mutually between strangers, in some respects, nearly every instance of a man's becoming romantically interested in a woman represents some element of love at first sight.

Ironically, women often regard this immediacy and urgency of romantic interest on the part of a relative stranger as an indication of superficiality or a purely sexual overture. From a woman's point-of-view, this makes sense because people usually project their own tendencies and though processes onto others in interpreting their actions and motives. For example, those who are suspicious of others or dishonest often assume that others are much more suspicious or dishonest. Since women generally cannot conceive of experiencing anything more than a superficial sexual interest in a stranger without knowing anything substantial about that person and without some basis for that reaction in meaningful personal interaction between them.

Whereas Marco's devotion to Lydia is based on his perception of guilt and responsibility for her predicament, Benigno's infatuation with Alicia seems to be a perfect example of the manner in which men can be love struck by a complete stranger even without any substantial interaction between them first. From the perspective of human sexual attraction and romantic infatuation, Benigno's infatuation is typical; what is atypical and perhaps less realistic is Benigno's continued devotion in light of Alicia's prognosis for recovery. From a much darker perspective, the apparent mental instability to which Benigno is prone may provide some explanation for his preoccupation with a virtual stranger. Ordinarily, it is not so much the manner in which men become infatuated with strangers so quickly that is sometimes a function of mental instability.

On the other hand, what very often is an indication of psychological dysfunction or obsession is the continued infatuation for a stranger even after rejection of a social overture. In that regard, the exact same male gestures are interpreted very differently.