Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is a Spanish black comedy-drama film released in 1988. It was directed and written by the well-known Spanish director, Pedro Almodóvar and was based on the French play The Human Voice (La Voix humaine, 1930) by Cocteau. The film stars internationally recognized Spanish actors Carmen Maura and Antonio Banderas.
The film revolves around the life of Pepa, a young and successful voice actor, but who is left feeling unhappy with her life after her boyfriend, Ivan breaks up with her. She is only left with messages from him and spends the movie trying to track him down. In her search, she meets the eccentric Lucia and Carlos, Ivan’s ex-wife and son. She is also embroiled in her friend Candela’s problems as she attempts to run away from her terrorist boyfriend.
The movie was extremely well received, earning an approval rating of 89& on Rotten Tomatoes and ranking #78 in Empire magazine's "The 100 Best Films of World Cinema" list in 2010. It was also at one point the highest-grossing Spanish film of all-time in Spain, earning $8 million at the box office.
