Boring in Barcelona (Vicky Cristina Barcelona (DVD))

Member Name: AJ26

Product:	Vicky Cristina Barcelona (DVD)
Date:	31/08/09 (62 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Penelope Cruz plays her character well

Disadvantages: Dull characters, uninteresting story, not a great comedy

I had never got round to seeing "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" when it was at the cinema but had it on my DVD rental list and finally got round to watching it recently.

The film was written and directed by Woody Allen and is a little bit quirky and strange which although I am not a film expert probably fits in with his other films.

The basic story is about two young women, Vicky and Cristina who take a long holiday to Barcelona. The two women are complete opposites of each other and the story is based around their relationships with each other and the relationships they have with other people. Cristina is played by Scarlett Johansson and is a woman who just goes with the flow and has never settled down. Her friend Vicky played by Rebecca Hall and is the opposite from Vicky and is about to settle down and marry her boyfriend.

Whilst eating in a restaurant in Barcelona they meet Juan Antonia Gonzalo played by Javier Bardem and Cristina immediately is attracted to him and takes him up on his offer to spend the weekend with him. Vicky as always the sensible one does not want to go off with a man she knows nothing about but agrees to go along to keep an eye on Cristina. The weekend changes things for both the girls and Vicky is left wondering what she really wants in life.

This film was not really what I expected. I thought it was going to be another romantic comedy (which I love) but it was not really this at all. The love story is very different and rather twisted and a bit bizarre. The characters did not really interest me except Penelope Cruz's character who plays Juans ex-wife. Her character is really rather mad and she plays the fiery, slightly off-balance Spanish woman perfectly. When she is arguing with Juan they argue in Spanish and this adds to the tension and fiery nature they share which works well in the film.

I was also slightly surprised that the film is only rated a 12, I would have thought considering some of the themes in the film it should have been rated higher. It isn't really suitable for that age group.

For me the whole film was a bit of a disappointment as I was expecting a nice romantic comedy and this film was certainly not that. It is not a film that I would particularly recommend to people and is not a film I would choose to watch again due to the uninteresting characters and the storyline which just failed to grab me. If you do want to watch it I would recommend renting it rather than paying the £11.98 which is what it costs to buy currently in Amazon.

Rated - 12
Running Time - 92 minutes

Summary: I found this a rather boring and unenjoyable film, wouldnt recommend!