Review: ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’

Zac:

Woody Allen’s latest continues his recent string of high quality productions and nestles right between Match Point and Cassandra’s Dream as his second best film of the last 5 years or so.

Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is an engaged girl who is in love with her husband and the idea of classic love out of a book or movie and knows what she wants in her love. Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) is her best friend and polar opposite. She will be erratic and go out on a limb, sleep with someone out of love, and only knows what she doesn’t want in love, but not what she does. The two travel to Spain for two months summer vacation so Vicky can work on her thesis in Catalan society while Christina unwinds from the stress induced by a short film she had labored over for the last 6 months. The two stay with Vicky’s distant aunt Judy (Patricia Clarkson) as the two sights see and enjoy the Spanish culture together in which the two have a chance encounter with Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem) an accomplished painter with a reputation in the art community for the antics of his failed marriage to Marà ­a Elena (Penelope Cruz). Juan Antonio sees the two title girls dining one night after catching Cristina’s eye at a gallery earlier that evening and offers them a weekend in Oviedo for sightseeing love making among the three of them and that is where the story really begins.

To spoil any more would be a disservice to this wonderful little film that sucks in you and doesn’t let go. The film is being sold completely wrong, as it isn’t about a torrid forbidden love affair between Marà ­a Elena, Juan Antonio, and Cristina. The title of this film is Vicky Cristina Barcelona, and that is exactly what this film is, it looks at the romantic exploits and the analysis of love of Vicky and Cristiana during their experiences in Spain over their 2 month vacation. The film throws all of these ideas and interpretations and questions about loves and brilliantly leaves with answers that really answer nothing, but guide you enough to make you ponder what love is on your own. You get to see both ends of the broad spectrum of love and Woody Allen does an amazing job of capturing it all in his wonderful script.

Rebecca Hall breaks out as Vicky and is both beautiful and complex as she struggles with her feelings throughout this film. She offers the grounded stereotypical look on love and most of us can and will relate to her as we try to figure out what we believe. I hope that she breaks out from her and becomes a recognizable star in the near future. Scarlet Johansson turns in possibly her best performance yet as the free spirit Cristina, and has never looked better either. You can see Cristina regain her confidence and find herself in the film and you can see her arc subtly change due to Johansson’s great turn. Penelope Cruz turns in a crazy and strong performance as Marà ­a Elena and lives up to the lofty picture painted of her before she ever shows up on screen. Only in about the third of the film, we get to see everything that Marà ­a Elena is and she is both sad and inspiring and that shines upon many of the characters in the film. I think the real stand out in the film though is Javier Bardem’s Juan Antonio. He is so real and confident and we so easily buy into his crazy ideas on love. He knows love, that is for sure, and his confidence lifts others and makes people more than they were capable of before they met him. He has an effect on everyone he meets and Bardem just shines every time he is on screen.

In the end, Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a wonderful little film that examines love from all angles. The four leads turn in fantastic performances all around and suck you into both the characters and story that unfold. Filled with plenty of humor, romance, and intrigue, there is something for just about anyone in this. It’s a film that sticks with you because it poses questions and leaves you to answer them and might even affect the way you look at life or love when it is all said and done.

[rating: 4.25/5]

Charles:

Around Fall of 2007, I learned that Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, and Scarlett Johansson were all cast in a new Untitled Woody Allen project. I started to think to myself… Wow, maybe this could be a contender at the Oscars and put Woody Allen back on the map. Some critics have bashed on Woody calling his work “hit or miss” and “repetitive”. I’m proud to say that Woody presents us with a gem of a film, filled with great acting and a interesting take on love and relationships.

So you have Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), Two Americans spending a summer vacation in Barcelona. Vicky is there doing research for her thesis while Cristina is there to relax where the atmosphere is a little different. One gloomy night, they meet painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), who invites them to go on a weekend trip to Spain with him for sightseeing, some wining and dining, and hot steamy sex. Cristina loves the idea, but the more conservative Vicky is unsure of how things might end up. Vicky has no intentions of sleeping with Juan especially since she has a fiance waiting for her in New York. After Cristina effortlessly tries to persuade Vicky, both women agree to accompany the painter and predictably, both fall head over heels for him. But things start to get a little confusing when Vicky’s fiance arrives in Spain to surprise her with an unexpected wedding and Juan’s insanely pyschoized ex-wife, Maria Elena (Penà ©lope Cruz), stumbles back into his life after a freakish suicide attempt.

The acting is perfect. Last year, Javier Bardem won an Oscar for his work as a psycho maniac in ‘No Country For Old Men’. His transformation is ravishing in this brilliant performance as a charismatic and confident Spanish lover. Penelope Cruz is as wild as a firecracker. Her role is jealously suicidal and this is the performance we have all been waiting for. I have to tell ya, I really enjoyed the hell out of Rebecca Hall. While watching this movie, I quickly recognized this fine actress from another film, the British Comedy ‘Starter for Ten’ opposite James McAvoy. A knock-out performance! Hall brings great humor and presence to this role. Now for Scarlett Johansson, I really enjoy everything she has done throughout her young illustrious career but her role in this got me to thinking that if Woody Allen casts her in another one of his movies, I’m going to have to skip it. Woody! Can you work with another actress? Long ago, you seem to cast Diane Keaton perfectly in all her roles opposite yourself but Johanson is no Keaton. I am sick of “Woody Dialouge” coming out of Scarlett’s mouth. Her dazzling performances in Match Point and Scoop were just fine thank you, but don’t recycle the can on this one.

When the ending hit, I started to say damn, what just happened? I wish Penelope was introduced earlier rather than later in the film because her relationship with Juan screws everybody in the end. The narrations tend to annoy but other than that it doesn’t really bring the movie down much. Overall, I would have to say that I really enjoyed this film. If you are familiar with Woody Allen’s work then be prepared to enjoy a fine, intelligent film from one of the greatest directors of our time.

[rating: 3.5/5]

Shanna:

The new Woody Allen film Vicky Cristina Barcelona is about life. Life is made up of choices. In general a person makes a decision, either right or wrong, and then lives with the consequences. The problem these characters face is that they cannot make a decision so in turn their lives are at an unhappy standstill.

The film begins with two American best friends arriving in Spain for a vacation from their life (a.k.a their inability to make a decision and stick with it). Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is the proper rule-follower who is studying for her Masters and is engaged to a hotshot New York businessman. Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) is the carefree artistic type who doesn’t know what she wants, but knows what she doesn’t want (I know it doesn’t make sense to me either). While out to dinner the two ladies strike up a conversation with a local passionate artist Juan (Javier Bardem) whom we find out later has a crazy ex-wife (Penelope Cruz) who tried to stab him. After talking to the ladies for about two minutes, Juan invites them to go on a trip to his hometown to see a local sculpture, relax, and have sex. The always-responsible Vicky outright refuse him, but the spontaneous Cristina agrees.

Both of the ladies are seduced by Juan and become more confused then ever about what they want out of life. Vicky is now torn between her financially stable, but boring finance and the exciting, but moody artist. Cristina quickly falls head over heels for Juan, but soon has doubts about their relationship when his ex-wife moves in with them.

The stand out in this film is Penelope Cruz as the mentally unstable ex-wife of Javier Bardem. She is exotically sensual, but obsessive and violent. This character reminds me of Cruz in the film Blow (2001), but here she is even better. The best scenes involve Cruz and Bardem arguing. They flip back and forth between Spanish and English flawlessly. My only problem with Cruz’s performance is that I wish there was more of it.

Rebecca Hall as Vicky stole the show from Scarlett Johansson. Hall had all the best Allen on-liners. She showed the depth and struggle her character was feeling. Johansson was just plain boring. She is the same character in every film. She has no intensity and her cuteness worn off a long time ago.

The screenplay was full of classic Woody Allen one-liners set to beautiful Spanish music and scenery. I did not enjoy the consent voiceovers. I felt like I was listening to a book on tape while watching the movie at the same time. Also, the ending was disappointing. It seemed like the writer did not know how to end the film. It left several open-ended questions, which I find annoying and lazy.

Overall, the film is worth watching just to experience the chemistry between Cruz and Bardem. The story was interesting with some high point, but ended poorly. The moral of the story is to live your life and be happy with the choices you make even if they are the wrong ones.

[rating: 3.5/5]