Review of Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) by Mimi S — 28 Jan 2014

I'm a fan of Woody Allen; I love his style and I always enjoy his films; they're very quirky and unique. I found Vicky Christina Barcelona very delightful and had the right balance of drama and charm. The film is about two best friends, Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Christina (Scarlett Johansson) who visit Barcelona for the summer and stay with a distant relative, Judy (Patricia Clarkson). The two best friends couldn't be more different; Vicky is practical and sensible and has her life planned out, whilst Christina is free-spirited, creative and open to trying new things. However when they both meet charming artist, Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), he threatens to come between the two best friends. Christina is intrigued by him and whilst Vicky initially dislikes Juan Antonio begins to succumb to his charm and questions her upcoming marriage to her reliable and doting fiancé, Doug (Chris Messina). Juan Antonio has his own baggage and problems as his unstable, mentally ill (probably bi-polar) ex wife Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz) keeps coming back into his life and the two share an unhealthy, passionate and intense on/off love/hate relationship.

Vicky Christina Barcelona (VCB) is a very philosophical and deep film about what is love? Although I'm not really into all the heavy philosophical bull crap, it's certainly a very interesting film to watch. The film was really well acted, even Scarlett Johansson who I normally dislike was decent, even though her character is a bit slutty and annoying. Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz were fantastic and so convincing! Brit actress Rebecca Hall was also really strong. I love Patricia Clarkson, she always gives a warm and honest performance. It's hard to like or dislike any of the characters as they have their flaws, but also they try to see the beauty in life. Javier Bardem's character really does chat a lot of bullshit though; he's definitely the kind of guy you should be weary of falling for in real life. I still kind of liked him at the same time. I found it funny how honest and upfront he was about getting Vicky and Christina into bed and having a threesome!!

All in all great film with a beautiful location and the film was beautifully shot. VCB is poignant, realistic and cheerful at the same time; I like films with some European culture, different from all the films that just focus on the American Hollywood culture. The only thing about this film is that it made me a bit more cynical about finding love; either it's being stuck in a marriage with a guy you're not really in love with or you're with a bohemian lover you're madly in love with but he can't commit to you or stay faithful to you. Also I was a bit dissatisfied with the ending. All of all I thought that this was an intriguing, quirky and fresh film. I highly recommend it! It certainly gives you a lot of food for thought! I give the film 85%, I was thinking of giving it 90, but to be fair I'm quite harsh with my ratings. I wish that RT let you give half ratings.

Grade: A.