Violent and dangerous macho men. The figure of the male batterer in Almodovar's cinema

Introduction. Violence against women is an act performed by men to reaffirm their masculinity and impose their hegemony by force. This article presents the results of a study of gender-based violence in Almodovar's films, focused on the figure of the male batterer, not the victims, the female characters. Methods. The study is based on two complementary analytical models: 1) a model of visual semiotic analysis from the perspective of gender studies, and 2) the quantification of the types of abuses carried out by male characters in Almodovar's filmography, as well as the factors that define these archetypes. Results and conclusions. Within the amalgam of masculinities portrayed in Almodovar's films, there are different types of male characters who commit violence against women through harassment, rape and murder.