He's BACK!

Rating: 10/10 (21 August 2008)

Woody's back!...and he seems to have finally grown up. I was a huge WA fan back in the 80s when he was banging out stellar works like Hannah and Her Sisters, Crimes & Misdemeanors and Husbands & Wives...but remember these works were quite dark in attitude. I thought he had a few amusing efforts in the 90s...mainly Bullets over Broadway, Mighty Aphrodite and Celebrity...but, again, these works were written by an author who is sad and distraught about the impossibility of 'happily ever after.' To be quite frank, I was bored with all his movies this century including Match Point (which I thought was a rehashed version of Crimes & Misdemeanors...minus the laughs).
In Vicky Cristina Barcelona WA seems to have finally found his mature outlook on passion, love, and romance. He is now a REALIST. I was overwhelmed by the line, "The only true love is unrequited love." He nailed it. Only the lack of resolution can make passion last. Otherwise it either fades or turns into negative emotions such as anger and resentment. These are the same themes Shakespeare examined in A Midsummer Nights Dream. And like that great play, VCB acknowledges that love and passion are a glorious part of life, but doesn't try to pretend that love is perfect or that 'happily ever after' really exists...the movie remains grounded in realism without becoming morose at the end like some of WA's earlier films.
The writing is witty, intelligent and intense. The acting is superb (especially Javier Bardem who is a truly GREAT actor). The directing is brilliant and subtle...notice how many times Vicky changes clothes before meeting Juan Antonio which epitomizes her desire for this man AND her confusion about her feelings. Also, Woody seems to have finally dropped his beloved Jazz, which I always found distracting, out-of-place and annoying in most of his earlier movies (the Gershwin in Manhattan being a notable exception).
After seeing this movie I went on Amazon and purchased the 3 box Woody Allen DVD collection. Woody's finally back in my life.