Vicky Cristina Barcelona

[Charlie]

If I ever saw a worse film than this, I have forgotten all about it, so for the moment this holds the unchallenged title, all-time worst film.

Nothing wrong with the performances, although how Penelope Cruz was adjudged an Oscar winner is another of life's mysteries.

The story-line is silly, but what utterly sinks the film is its redundant and banal voice-over, which seems to be aimed at very slow-witted six-year-olds.

A typical line is 'They bought some pastries at a shop in the middle of town, which were very delicious". Apart from the clunky sentence structure, which would have been corrected by any six-year-old's primary school teacher, it is never explained from whose point of view the voice over is being delivered (and in whose opinion those pastries were delicious).

This patronising tone keeps up right to the end, confirming just how far the writer Woody Allen has sunk from his glory days, with every mood swing being described, as if the actors aren't good enough to convey them.

Beware the soundtrack music too, twee, vapid and endlessly irritating. Not even a classic from Pacio de Lucia can rescue it, no matter how many times they reprise it (which is very often).

Tosh

[Rod B.]

Nothing wrong with the performances, although how Penelope Cruz was adjudged an Oscar winner is another of life's mysteries.

Not seen the film, and not in a rush to see it either. But it often seems to be the case that actors and directors don't get Oscars for the performances they actually deserve one for, but then pick up an Oscar for a lesser film further down the track. Penélope should have won an Oscar when she was nominated for Volver, so this is in a way putting things right for that.

[garth cartwright]

I warned you Charlie! And, yes, how Penelope doing the fiery/sexy Spanish girl by numbers beat Marisa Tomei's brilliant turn in the Wrestler is a crime!

[Jamie Renton]

I'm not in a rush to see this one either. Haven't bothered with Woody for years. I think he's a smart bloke who wears glasses & hasn't done any really good work for over 2 decades: cinema's very own Elvis Costello

[David Flower]

suggest anyone watches Volver to see Penelope Cruz at her best. Rare to see acting that good by an actress looking that good. Looking forward to her upcoming film reunited with director Almodóvar, as on Volver

It's been half-term so we went to see 'Bolt. Another masterpiece from Pixar. Brilliant

[uiwangmike]

what utterly sinks the film is its redundant and banal voice-over

I wondered if Woody was trying to imitate Eric Rohmer, just as he tried to imitate Bergman many years ago. Apart from the addition of sex scenes, the film looked a bit like a Rohmer film - characters in an attractive setting with a lot of time on their hands and talking a lot. Vicky had come to Barcelona to write a dissertation on "Catalan identidy", a project which gets forgotten about 5 minutes into the film, which is just as well since she hadn't thought to learn any Spanish, let alone Catalan, before starting. I was also reminded of Three Coins in A Fountain, which turned up on C4 a month or two ago - American ingenues (if Scarlett J. can be so called) being swept of ther feet by a wealthy amorous Latin, though with Javier Bardem a pretty sleazy version of Rossano Brazzi. Norman said Match Point was rubbish, but it was brilliant compared to this - at least I wanted to know what was going to happen in the end.

[Rod B.]

Looking forward to her upcoming film reunited with director Almodóvar, as on Volver

It's out here next Wednesday - can't wait!



[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GFzEl2FU5I[/youtube]