Good Allen

Rating: Null/10 (23 December 2008)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)
*** (out of 4)
Girlfriends Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) are on vacation in Barcelona when a painter named Juan (Javier Bardem) invites them to travel with him. Both women end up going and falling for Juan but their paths towards him are a lot different. Things take yet another turn when Vicky gets married and Juan's ex-wife (Penelope Cruz) enters his life again. I guess it's not really fair to say I'm a tad bit disappointed considering I liked the film yet I was really hoping for more even though what's here is pretty entertaining. I get the negative stuff out of the way first and for me it was the final thirty-minutes of the movie. The way Allen kept going back and forth between the two story lines wasn't all that interesting to me and I even think Vicky's character wasn't all that well written in the second half of the film. That's really a shame because Hall is very good in her role as are the rest of the cast but it's Bardem who really steals the movie. I really loved his performance here with that Romeo like charm that he pushes on all three of the women in his life. I think he perfectly captures that sexuality he is constantly giving off but it works because of his charm as well. Johansson is making a name for herself in Allen's movies and he's once again written a very good role for her and the actress delivers. Cruz is only in the film for a handful of scenes but she's really, really good here and works excellently with Bardem. As with the recent trend in Allen's films, this one here benefits from the beautiful Spanish landscape, which certainly sets the mood for the film. Allen's choice for a music is a good one and the cinematography is nice as well. While this is an entertaining film I wouldn't call it one of the director's best.