10 More Disturbing Plot Twists In Non-Horror Movies

It's not surprising that one of film's upsetting plot twists was delivered by the brilliant Pedro Almodovar. He's a master of royally effed-up plot twists, usually involving taboo subjects such as sexual assault or incest. With 2011's The Skin I Live In, he outdid himself. 

This one centres around Robert Ledgard (Antonio Banderas), a sinister plastic surgeon. He's keeping a mysterious woman named Vera (Elena Anaya) captive at his house, and flashbacks reveal Robert's traumatic past; he lost both his wife and his daughter to suicide. 

So, who is Vera? And why does she look exactly like Ledgard's late wife? It's unlikely anyone was able to guess the answer. 

Ledgard's daughter (Blanca Suarez) suffered a traumatic experience at a party which led to her suicide, and when Ledgard witnessed a young man named Vicente (Jan Cornet) rushing off, he incorrectly assumes that Vicente assaulted her, so he kidnaps Vicente, subjects him to a forced sex-change and transforms him into a replica of his late wife. 'Messed up' doesn't even cover it. 

Thankfully, Vera/Vicente escapes and is reunited with their family, but they'd been captive for six years by that point so it's hardly a happy ending. Many, many films have tackled the subjects of grief, trauma, and revenge, but few have represented them in such a powerful way as this.