Review of Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) by Filipeneto — 22 Aug 2018

Woody Allen is one of those directors that either we love or hate. I confess, I am the exception: I don't like nor hate, I've never had much contact with his films. This film was, probably, the first of his work I saw from beginning to end, and I liked it. It has a somewhat unrealistic but acceptable script in which two American girls get involved with the same man during a summer trip to Barcelona. Both are dissatisfied with their love life for different reasons: Vicky attaches great value to commitment but needs passion to support it; Cristina is very passionate but she cannot be in a relationship because she always feels something missing. In this duality lies the great criticism the film makes to the emptiness of American society, described as very conservative and worried with appearances. On the other side the Spanish Juan Antonio and Maria Elena, a former couple whose love is deep and destructive to the point of not being able to live without melodramatic fights. Through them, Allen seems to criticize the way of being of European society, described as being very liberal. The whole movie is a clash of mindsets of different people, representing very different civilizations and different ways of facing love.

Of course, this is all based on Woody Allen's own views. I, for example, have a very different idea of ​​what Europeans and Americans are like, and I don't think they are so different. We must not forget that American society has been shaped in the image of Europe. Never has Europe seemed to me as liberal and open-minded as the film suggests, and even Latin countries (like my own) are quite conservative, partly because of religious issues, although its also true that they're becoming more liberal (maybe too much). But this only proves that these ideas are points of view, debatable and subjective. Either way, the way the characters behave is very interesting, creating situations that are very hilarious. The narrator works well and has an excellent voice. Concerning the actors, they're all big names. Bardem and Cruz, however, deserve special applause for the way they ended up standing out, starring in some of the funniest scenes. Rebecca Hall did a good job in the role of conventional Vicky, giving her special psychological depth from which she falls in love. Scarlett Johansson fulfilled her role, not surprisingly but also without disappointment. She was OK most of the time. A note of praise still for the very careful cinematography and for the choice of filming locations, who knew how to take advantage of the landscapes and tourist icons that we associate with the Catalan capital.

Intelligent, beautiful, passionate, romantic, elegant... there would be several adjectives for this film. It's not enough to shut up those who hate Woody Allen but, for those like me, who are not familiar with his work, it's enough to give him more attention from now on.