Minor Woody Tale

Rating: 6/10 (2 March 2009)

Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), two American friends in their twenties, are holidaying in beautiful Barcelona prior to Vicky's marriage to the dull but worthy Doug (Chris Messina). They meet Juan Antonio, accomplished artist and dedicated Latin lover (Javier Bardem), who proposes going to bed with both of them, preferably at the same time. Cristina is keen, but passes out and it is the guilty Vicky who has a night of passion before marrying the unsuspecting Doug. Afterwards, Juan Antonio and Cristina get together, and, surprise, form a relationship. Alas, the idyll is interrupted by a blast from Juan Antonio's past, his homeless and unstable ex-wife Maria (Penelope Cruz). Juan Antonio can't bring himself to turn her away, and the three of them start living together. At first things go well, but then Well, the movie succeeds as travelogue. The locations are authentic and beautiful. The acting is fine, especially the two Spanish leads. But this is a slight story about two emotionally shallow and not very interesting Americans abroad. The real people are the locals. We are also kept at a distance from the characters by a bland voice-over. Perhaps Woody Allen, a long-time student of American sexual manners, is aiming to contrast the Spanish and (wasp) American approaches to affairs of the heart. The Spanish go for romance as if life depended on it, the American regard it as just another life goal, like a college education, or a well-paid middle-class job. The Americans are strangely discontented in the warm Catalonian environment, while the Spanish seem to belong there, which of course they do.
I'm not complaining (it was after all a free in-flight movie being shown before the release date here) and it was lovely to see Barcelona again after 10 years, if only on the back of the seat in front of me, but I'd have to say Woody's best work is behind him. I saw Eastwood's "Gran Torino" afterwards – now there's an ancient director who still can produce, as well as act.