Review of Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) by Ernesto C — 30 Dec 2013

I have ALWAYS been anti Woody Allen! I hated his monologues when I was a little kid and saw movies like Bananas and Sleeper and I can't even remember which other ones. I long ago grew allergic to seeing his little face and hearing his annoying self-involved whinealogs and rhetorical musing. After taking a 10 to 20 year hiatus, I was tricked into allowing myself to give a chance to something he is involved in by a host of new actors and the lush setting. My mistake!

I'd hoped the 21st-century might have developed my appreciation for his talents. Unfortunately, the dialogue and voice overs in this movie gave me a rash right away. I loved the same actors in other roles, and I can't blame them for being tricked into acting in this movie. The cast is strong and they are all doing their best to keeping straight faces when delivering the preposterous Allen-isms which abound. The plot is lame, and I can help imagine the story transposed into something with less "tone and sophistication". Trade wine for beer, Spanish guitar for rock and roll and Barcelona for strip malls and you have a movie less sophisticated than SuperBad, not 1/10 as funny and supreme disapointment.