Volver (Pedro Almodovar, 2006)

[kinjitsu]

From Cahiers du cinéma:

Volver: A Disarmed Art

[Barmy]

Gaseous is right.

[Michael]

Well the review is pure gas!

[Jem]

Anyone seen this yet?
Love to read some teasing hyperbole.

[Lino]

I have. Go to page 2.

[Via_Chicago]

I wrote a review of this (some time ago now) on my blog.

[Jem]

I feel better now, thank you.

[Michael]

Is Volver the best film of the year? HELL YEAH! I was completely blown away.

So many people think the "old" Almodovar is better, but I'm of the school that thinks he gets better and better with age.

Penelope Cruz is phenomenal. I can't remember another actress who can cry on cue as well as she can. Since most of you haven't seen Volver yet, it's best for me not to say anything about specific scenes, but I will say that the "singing/listening from the car" scene made me totally bawl.

It also reminded me a lot of several loved ones in my family, and brought back a lot of feelings I've had since their death. I'm excited to see it again.

[toiletduck!]

I really don't know how I keeping getting roped into going to these.

Maybe I'm just not as in touch with my feminine side as I once thought, but this was yet another case of me almost sleeping through an Almodovar. Some of Peter Matthews article fits with my thoughts, but I can't understand Almodovar's rep as an "bad boy" of anything -- what I saw was a artistically lowbrow (read: highbrow for the plebians) narrative version of The View (albeit better looking). Maybe I need to check out the so-called "old" Almodovar, but I'm becoming more and more loath to as time goes by.

EDIT: Just found this on the last page:

He got a huge response when he stated that women aren't that complicated, and just because people in Hollywood don't choose to write about them, doesn't mean it's hard to do.

That speaks to a large part of what puts me off on Pedro's films as well. His women strike me as the feminine equivalent of a Schwarzenegger or a Van Damme. Of course Pedro's women aren't complicated -- they're cliched pastiches of the qualities a woman desires in herself. But there's very little thought process to any of them -- he jumps from major event to major event to keep them going--

Spoiler

BAM! murdered father/husband... BAM! Mom's a ghost... BAM! friend has cancer... BAM! Mom's not a ghost, just a murderer -- revelation after revelation...

--because there's little or no thought or investment from any of the characters in what's actually happening.

-Toilet Dcuk

[Michael]

I don't think Almodovar requires you to get in touch with your feminine style in order to like or understand his films. He has made some really "masculine" films, Bad Education being the best example. It's possible that you simply don't like his signature style. Don't feel bad. Some of my friends, gay and straight, can't stand Almodovar.

[Michael]

That speaks to a large part of what puts me off on Pedro's films as well. His women strike me as the feminine equivalent of a Schwarzenegger or a Van Damme. Of course Pedro's women aren't complicated -- they're cliched pastiches of the qualities a woman desires in herself. But there's very little thought process to any of them -- he jumps from major event to major event to keep them going -- because there's little or no thought or investment from any of the characters in what's actually happening.

Revelation after revelation. Isn't that typical of the 40s and 50s film noir and women pics? And melodramas. Almodovar's passion for that part of cinema is gloriously felt and realized in every one of his films. Every Almodovar film pays a homage to at least two or three films of that particular era.

For example:

Bad Education = All About Eve, Vertigo and Double Indemnity.

Volver = Mildred Pierce and Bellissima, both women pics bursting with revelations piling on revelations nonstop.

[toiletduck!]

If that's where Almodovar's appeal lies, then fair enough -- those are also, unsurprisingly, genres that don't particularly speak to me.

I was under the impression that a large part of his pull was his 'deep' female characterizations. If the general consensus is that we are fully aware that these are merely bodies present to react to the proceedings, well, that changes everything. I still don't enjoy it, but at least I get it now.

-Toilet Dcuk

[zombeaner]

He has made some really "masculine" films, Bad Education being the best example.

Just because a film is filled with men, doesn't make it masculine. I think you'd be hard pressed to label Bad Education as traditionally masculine. It is a wonderful film. A better film than Volver, which I saw today.

[Michael]

That's why I quoted "masculine". Read what I wrote carefully. Some wonder if one needs to be in touch with his feminine side to appreciate Volver since it has a nearly all female cast. But like I wrote previously, I don't think so. And that also applies to his all-male (is that better?) films, such as Bad Education and Law of Desire, we don't need to get in touch with our masculine side to celebrate them. That's the point I was trying to make.

[Lino]

Penelope Cruz is phenomenal. I can't remember another actress who can cry on cue as well as she can. Since most of you haven't seen Volver yet, it's best for me not to say anything about specific scenes, but I will say that the "singing/listening from the car" scene made me totally bawl.

Told you so!

[Michael]

Don't you love the surreal opening? Goosebumps jumped up all over me during that opening. And what about that gorgeous overhead shot of Penelope Cruz washing the dishes? I can't emphasize how much joy watching Carmen Maura and Chus Lampreave on the big screen again gave me.

I really like what acquarello wrote about Volver

[Antoine Doinel]

I saw this tonight and I'll gladly add my voice to the choir singing the film's praises. I'm not an Almodovar devotee like others in the thread, and I haven't seen anywhere near the bulk of his work, but I was immediately struck by his assured hand behind the camera. His ability to handle the various tones of the film - humor, soap opera drama, ghost story - without losing the emotional core is amazing. Volver builds in a way that few films do reaching a pitch I couldn't have seen coming from the opening frames.

Does anyone know if it was actually Penelope Cruz singing during the beautiful restaurant/hiding car scene?

SPOILER BELOW

I will say I did have one major problem with the film that prevented me from embracing it completely.

Spoiler

Why couldn't Sole just tell Raimunda that their mother had returned? I didn't understand why she kept hiding her especially when she returned for the sole purpose of seeking Raimunda's forgiveness.

Thought it was a huge white elephant in the room for me, I was so swept up in the story it didn't bother me the way it would in a lesser film.

[hangthadj]

This finally hit Indianapolis this past week, and saw it last night and loved it.

I keep walking into Almodovar pics expecting not to be moved for some reason. And every time I see one, the mellodrama just copletely wraps me up and I leave the theater much more moved than I would have imagined coming in.

I stayed away from this thread before seeing it, so the whole buildup was incredible to me, and as Antoine Doinel mentioned above, it's something thats hard to imagine getting to after the opening frames.

Beyond that, it's just a beautiful film to look at, and I am not just talking about Penelope Cruz, who looks wonderful and gives the best performance she will likely ever give. But, the colors, the lighting, and one scene in particular with paper towells (those who saw it know what I am speaking of) just floored me.

I'm in the smaller Almodovar camp who thinks his best work has been in his last 4-5 films. I love each one, and though this didn't reach the incerdible hights of Talk to Her for me. It's still just fantastic. One of the best films of last year.

[TheGodfather]

I just saw the movie last saturday and this is what I thought about it:

Volver

Raimunda (Penelope Cruz) is a young woman that, together with her husband Paco and teenage daughter Paula, has problems of making ends meet every month. When Paco tries to do some terrible stuff to Paula, she stabs him. Together with her sister Sole, Raimunda goes to meet her old aunt. While being there, Sole finds out that the spirit of her dead mother has returned to straighten out some stuff she didn`t do while she was alive...

With Volver, Almoldovar delivers another beauty of a film. It`s a true joy to watch. He mixes humor and tearjerking drama without a problem, it doesn`t feel forced and works really well. One moment you`re laughing, the next moment you`re having tears in your eyes when Raimunda is singing an old childhood song. The build-up is nice and slow so you can get to know the characters before the actual story takes off. A story that is original, strong and that has some surprises. The acting is magnificent, with an extra note for Penelope Cruz, who delivers the best performance of her career. Also, Carmen Maura and Lola Dueñas as the mother and Sole are excellent. As said, the atmosphere is nice and relaxed and typical Spanish. The soundtrack helps a lot with that, one that is sublime and a joy to listen to.
When the movie was finished, I felt kinda sad. Wich is weird because Volver is a beautiful hommage to life, death and strong and independent women wich will stay with you long after the movie has finished.

[rohmerin]

Does anyone know if it was actually Penelope Cruz singing during the beautiful restaurant/hiding car scene?

No, she doesn't sing. She's dubbed. Estrella Morente, the famous new flamenco singer dubbes ( ¿doblar la voz es dubbes?) when Penélope sings.

[Michael]

I've watched Volver three times in one month already! And I still want to see it again!

What a genuinely moving and beautifully shot film Volver is. Let me share something personal, something fitting with Volver:

A few years ago, when I came home very late at night, I discovered a powerful scent of cherry-wood tobacco floating around me only in one specific spot, one of the dining rooms corners and I asked my partner if he did something inside the house before I got home. He said no but he could smell that very scent around me.. only around me wherever I went only in that corner. He said a prayer and the scent instantly disappeared. We then hunted for where the scent came from - the clothes I had on and everything in that room. Nothing. The next morning, it finally dawned on me that when I was little, I loved to climb on my grandparent's couch in the den just to sniff my grandfather's glass jar of cherry-wood tobacco. I loved that scent. My partner and I then ran to Walgreens to check bags of cherry-wood tobacco to confirm if that was the same scent. Indeed it was.

Volver captures the emotions of this revelation so perfectly and leaves me in a total mess every time at the theater. It strikes that very string in my heart - the longing to see my grandfather just for one more time. If I had lost my mom or grandma prior to seeing Volver, I don't think I'd had made it through to the end. It's how emotional it is..but it's never depressing. It's really a joy to watch. Miraculous also.

Matt and davidhare, have you seen the film yet? I just can't imagine you guys not liking it. A thoroughly beautiful celebration of Hollywood and Italian women pics and Fassbinder too.

[Matt]

Matt and davidhare, have you seen the film yet? I just can't imagine you guys not liking it.

I've seen it. I need to see it again before I can really comment on it. I have little memory of the first half of the film because I was distracted by the people behind me carrying on a constant conversation (I eventually moved seats). Also, Almodovar's films always require a second viewing for me to appreciate fully anyway.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

I saw this today in Lynchburg VA of all places. What a lovely movie! It's been years since I last saw Penelope Cruz in any movie, but she really impressed me here. All of the acting was a delight actually and that's usually what I enjoy most (along with the cinematography) in Almodovar's films. I wish I could see more films as sophisticated as this one. A particular delight was Lola Dueñas because she looks a lot like an ex-girlfriend of mine. I'm glad I saw this one on the big screen! Off to Bad Education now.

[patrick]

I've been working so much lately that I never got a chance to see this in theaters, but I watched the DVD this weekend and I definitely think it's one of Almodovar's best. It's missing some of the manic energy that defines his early work, but ultimately it's a beautiful compromise between his early period and the so-called women's films he's been doing in recent years (although Bad Education was a big indicator that he's moved on to another phase). The interplay between Cruz and Maura was absolutely wonderful, and it's a shame that everyone jumped to (deservedly) praise Cruz but Maura seemed to be a bit overlooked. All in all, it's a completely beautiful film in every aspect.

Also, I found the blood-cleaning scene to be particularly brilliant, as I was kind of amazed that it seemed to be something that no one's ever done on film before. The matter-of-fact attitude that it was approached with was kind of remarkable. I'm probably not explaining myself well here.