"Strange Way of Life" and Queering the Western Canon

 By Phelan Halloran

What could two men possibly do together on a ranch alone? The question sounds like the setup to a bad joke, but it is the central question of Pedro Almodóvar's short film "Strange Way of Life". The short film opens with Silva (Pedro Pascal), riding a horse across a desert to see his old friend Jake (Ethan Hawke) after 25 years apart. It becomes clear that Silva is not there purely for a social visit and the history between Silva and Jake is not strictly platonic. Silva's son, Joe, is suspected of murdering the widow of Jake's brother, and Jake, now the sheriff of their small town, has sworn revenge. Despite the two having sex the night Silva arrives in town, Jake rebuffs every emotional advance Silva makes, accusing him of only reconnecting to help Joe to escape. Jake is right, to an extent, and Silva does indeed help Joe to escape to Mexico. However, Silva divides his loyalty between his son and Jake, aiming his shotgun towards Joe, threatening to kill him if he shoots at Jake as he leaves and shooting Jake when he aims his own gun towards Joe. After Joe leaves, Silva tends to Jake’s wounds, revealing that he intentionally shot Jake clean through his side. The short film ends with Silva and Jake sitting together, as Silva reminisces on their past and his dream to own a ranch with Jake and Jake’s hesitance, once asking what two men could possibly do together on a ranch alone. Silva then answers the 25-year-old question, saying that they could take care of each other.

“Strange Way of Life” is steeped in history, both the fictional history of Silva and Jake and the contextual history of the western genre. The western genre is highly aestheticized, drawing upon an American mythos of masculinity, self-sufficiency, and independence. Silva, although as much of a traditionally masculine presenting gunslinger as Jake, seems to reject this cultural dogma, dreaming of a domestic life in which he and Jake could be vulnerable with one another. Jake, meanwhile, is so entrenched in the traditional western mindset that he rejects this potential happiness when it is presented to him, struggling to even imagine what his life with Silva could be.

The performances of Pascal and Hawke in “Strange Way of Life” is perhaps the short film’s greatest strength, as I think is necessary in such an intimate story. Additionally, the time constriction inherent to the format of the short film works perfectly for the story being told, allowing for a detailed snapshot of a relationship while letting the audience imagine its history and what might happen next for the couple. A valid critique could be made that "Strange Way of Life" depends too much on its aesthetics given that one of the short film’s producers was fashion brand Yves Saint Laurent, but I think that the focus on style make sense given that the western genre has such an iconic aesthetic and the reduced runtime prevented too many scenes centered purely on visuals.

“Strange Way of Life” is a recent addition to the queer western canon, a genre which, whether intentionally or not, the film “Near Dark” is a part of. “Strange Way of Life” contributes to the genre by portraying the difference between queer sexuality and queer romantic desire. Jake can be physically intimate with Silva and reconcile his sexual desire with his masculine persona but is unable to allow himself to be romantically attracted to Silva. In “Near Dark,” Caleb is clearly sexually attracted to Mae, but any romantic connection between the two is not fully explored, allowing for his romantic desires to perhaps be a bit more queer.