Kiss of the Spider Woman is a sexy and flirty film with a daring love story set in Argentina’s darkest years, blending politics, fantasy, and music into a tale of survival and connection.

Starring Diego Luna, Tonatiuh, and Jennifer Lopez, this remake of the 1985 film, originally based on Manuel Puig’s 1976 novel Kiss of the Spider Woman, has some big shoes to fill. The original was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and won Best Actor. So, if you’re going to remake a film with that legacy, you need to deliver something that can stand beside the original while also feeling fresh and new for a contemporary audience.

So, how does it measure up? Let’s break down this new musical to see where it hits, misses, and breaks new ground.

You can read the review below or watch the video review on YouTube:

Kiss of the Spider Woman is set in Argentina in the 1983, during the years of dictatorship when dissent was silenced. People were picked up off the street by the military, jailed, tortured, and disappeared. Over 30,000 people were targeted, either being imprisoned or disappeared entirely. Artists, musicians, writers, and whole communities were erased, many never seen again. This film takes that moment in history and tells it through two fictional men trapped in a cell and forced into each other’s lives, which ultimately transforms them both through their need to survive.

The story centers on Valentin, a freedom fighter with critical resistance information the authorities cannot extract. Torture hasn’t broken him, and silence has kept him alive. Frustrated with the lack of progress, the government tries another tactic. They place him with Molina, a charming and eccentric gay man imprisoned for years simply for being gay. Molina’s mother is sick, and the authorities promise him release if he can coax information out of Valentin. Desperate for freedom, he agrees, and that is where the story begins.

First Impressions
The story on the surface is very simple and exemplified in Molina’s approach. He shares who he is, talking honestly about himself, and slowly he begins telling Valentin stories. He believes everyone has one defining film, and for him it is Kiss of the Spider Woman. During their time together, he shares the film’s story piece by piece, bringing to life the tale of Aurora, a glamorous magazine editor who has had trouble committing to a man for certain reasons, but then finally finds love, only to realize that the price of that love is extraordinarily high. In many ways, Molina becomes a modern Scheherazade, spinning stories for Valentin night after night to connect with his cellmate. These stories turn into a form of friendship and comfort designed to keep them both alive inside a world that was designed to destroy them.

The result is two films that are interwoven and resonate thematically about love and the cost of love whether in the real world or in the world of the Spider Woman. Molina and Valentin’s story is told in dark and dirty shadows with gray tones that capture the grimness of prison life. Set against that backdrop of reality is the second fantastical film bursting with vivid, oversaturated color, full of melodrama, romance, and tragedy. These dreamlike sequences of Molina’s story stand in sharp contrast to the oppressive prison, shifting us constantly between harsh reality and shimmering fantasy.

Over time, the lines between the two stories blur. Molina’s retelling begins to echo Valentin’s own reality. The brutality of imprisonment collides with the tenderness of human connection and the lure of a soft safe place to hide. What starts as cool annoyance and suspicion slowly grows into friendship, and eventually into love that is born from the desperation of their shared experience inside the cell.

Theatrical Inspirations in the Film
What stood out most to me is how tightly this story is written and structured. Even though much of it takes place in a single prison cell, it never feels small. It feels expansive because of the way the two films overlap and how they use every square inch of the space they are given to tell the story. The contrast between the prison drama and the fantasy of the musical creates a cinematic relief that juxtaposes shadow and light, grays and saturated colors, oppression and freedom, and pain and singing in ways that are visually engaging.

At times, it felt like watching a stage play because of how they use the space within the cell. We get the claustrophobic feel of their life in this place, and that forces us to pay attention to everything they do and say, from their dialogue to their silences, from their acts of kindness to their moments of frustration. Then the film shifts, splashing into these expansive flamboyant musical scenes that shock us out of that grim nightmare. In this way, Kiss of the Spider Woman actually manages to be simultaneously theatrical and cinematic, and that balance is what makes the film work.

The Musical Within the Film
Yes, this is a musical, so let’s talk about the songs and choreography because the visuals are terrific. Roughly a third of the film, maybe more, is told through singing and dancing in Molina’s retelling of Kiss of the Spider Woman. If you’re not keen on musicals, this might not be your film. Still, the musical side is what breathes life into the story. It’s where the vibrancy comes from, keeping the darker prison scenes from feeling too heavy or depressing.

While the music isn’t my favorite soundtrack, every song serves its purpose. There aren’t any major showstoppers, but each number fits the moment and advances the story. Jennifer Lopez delivers a few strong performances, and her best might be the song that plays over the opening credits. Her voice sounds richer and more sensual here than in much of her solo work.

Diego Luna pulls off the grim, jaded revolutionary with restraint, giving us a man teetering on the edge of collapse. Yet when he steps into his dual role as Armando during the musical sequences, he loosens up with surprising warmth. He does a good job, though his talent is overshadowed by Tonatiuh, who truly is the star of the show. Tonatiuh is wildly entertaining and deeply expressive, embracing the nuances of his role as a gay man caught in an impossible situation.

Even so, it’s Luna’s steadiness as the Argentinian freedom fighter that keeps the film believable and prevents it from becoming just another flashy musical. His performance anchors the story while Tonatiuh and Lopez bring it to life through movement and song.

Cast and Character Development
Because Kiss of the Spider Woman is essentially two intertwined films, each character plays a dual role to embody the light and dark sides of the story. Diego Luna plays Valentín Arregui, the imprisoned freedom fighter, and Armando, the photographer who captures Aurora’s heart within the musical side of the story. Tonatiuh plays both Luis Molina, the prisoner who is sent into spy on Valentin, and Kendall Nesbit, Aurora’s trusted assistant. Finally, there is Jennifer Lopez, who appears only in the musical side of the film as both Aurora and the Spider Woman. While she isn’t the most flexible actress, she does look glamorous in this role, and she’s fun to watch on screen.

Themes and Theatrical Style
At its heart, Kiss of the Spider Woman is a love story. It’s also a political story about resistance and oppression during the darkest days of Argentina’s history. It’s about human kindness, about trust and betrayal, and about how shared suffering can create bonds that transcend political and social differences.

The relationship between Molina and Valentin evolves slowly, step by step. At first, they have nothing in common. One is a freedom fighter, hardened and defiant. The other is a dreamer, a man who clings to movies and fantasy. Yet as the days pass, they find themselves turning toward each other. The brutality of prison life, paired with inhumane treatment, creates a shared experience that only two men living under the constant threat of death could understand. From that shared pain grows friendship, compassion, and eventually love.

The musical sequences highlight this duality from the harsh reality embodied by Valentin’s situation to the escapist fantasy embraced by Molina. Within that fantasy darkness and fear are transformed into light and beauty, making life bearable, if only for a moment.

Kiss of the Spider Woman is also a film about how love redefines us, even as it means letting go of the parts of ourselves that we once needed to survive. For Molina, it’s realizing that true affection isn’t about shrinking himself to fit someone else’s life, but finding someone with whom he can be fully himself. For Valentin, it’s the realization that love takes many forms, and that even fleeting moments of tenderness can restore a man’s humanity in his darkest hours.

Recommendation
So, is Kiss of the Spider Woman ticket-worthy? I think you’ll know before walking into the theater if you’re going to like this film. If you enjoy LGBT friendly films, musicals, romances, or slow burn political thrillers, I think you’ll find something here to like. The story is strong, and the script is well written, but it’s really the connection between Diego Luna and Tonatiuh that sells it.

If these things aren’t generally the type of films that you enjoy watching, I don’t think this film is going to change your mind. However, if you do like these kinds of movies, I think you’ll enjoy it. So, Kiss of the Spider Woman, what do you think? Is this a film that you’re planning to check out? Did you see the original back in the day or read the book? Let me know in the comments below.

If you enjoyed this review, please give it a like and subscribe for more. You can also visit my YouTube channel at @ErinUnderwood for more videos.

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If you’d like to learn more about KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN, you can use my Amazon Associate links:

• Kiss of the Spider Woman by Manuel Puig (Paperback) – https://amzn.to/42D7a3v
• Kiss of the Spider Woman (1984), starring William Hurt (Blu-ray) – https://amzn.to/4h9Jqdh
• Kiss of the Spider Woman Soundtrack (2025), featuring Jennifer Lopez, Tonatiuh, and Diego Luna (CD) – https://amzn.to/490n5g1