Technical flaws defeat promising concept

Rating: 6/10 (16 May 2009)

I am a Woody Allen fan (who isn't?) and therefore I always look forward to his films. I admire the fact that he is a relentless pusher of boundaries and that he tries to do different films.
Unfortunately however when he is not present as an actor (he has a great screen presence) his films can lack a certain something and this is unfortunately the case here.
The missing Woody isn't the main problem however. There are in fact two major technical problems however which fatally flaw the film.
Firstly, there is an entirely unnecessary voice-over which grates on the ears and adds little to the plot. Voiceovers can of course work well, in context. Michael Caine did a great verbalisation of his thoughts in Hannah and Her Sisters for example which was crucial to the plot.
In this case the voice-over had no connection to the film, wasn't done by a character in it and instead appeared from nowhere as a sort of invisible omniscient presence which was simply unrealistic and distracting. All it did was suggest that the director felt his tale wasn't being properly told by the cast or the footage shot. The plot wasn't difficult to follow so a narration really wasn't required.
Secondly, much of the dialogue in this film is in Spanish or Catalan. None of this is subtitled, leaving large gaps in scenes. It almost seems like the Spanish lines are completely unnecessary and are just in there for 'colour'. Yet why should we sympathise with characters if the director can't be bothered providing their words and thoughts to the audience? With these issues resolved perhaps the film might have worked. Cruz and Bardem were quite charismatic and charming and the plot wasn't bad.
Unfortunately Johansson was as pretty as ever but seemed rather vacant and Hall (who can be very engaging as Starter for 10 proved) seemed to struggle with a rather pointless part.
In short then a disappointment. Allen needs to find a more charismatic muse than Johansson (Match Point was rotten as well) and the complete lack of genuine humour and indeed humanity in the script means this is way below his high standards of the past.
On the brighter side however the use of Barcelona as a backdrop worked well and its beauty shone through the film.
As I say I am a fan of Allen in general and much of his recent output I have liked a lot, Melinda and Melinda was excellent for example as was Curse of the Jade Scorpion but this film needed a stronger script and there needed to be a point to the story.
My partner and I watched the Odd Couple just before this film. While comparisons between old and new films are inevitably unfair it does make one wonder if the new crop of bland good looking so called 'stars' deserve the label compared to the greater brighter talents of the past.
No one can be a genius every day however and Allen's cinematic legacy is already assured. 6/10