Volver (2006) Movie Review

Volver (2006) Movie Credits:

richcline's score:
5 out of 5

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Volver (2006) U.S. Cinema Release Date:

3^rd Nov 2006

Volver (2006) U.K. Cinema Release Date:

25^th Aug 2006

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Volver (2006) Synopsis:

The film, which stars Penelope Cruz and Carmen Maura is a meeting of "Mildred Pierce" (Michael Curtiz) and "Arsenic and Old Lace" (Frank Capra), combined with the surrealistic naturalism of Amodovar's fourth film, "¿Qué he hecho yo para merecer esto!!" ("What Have I Done to Deserve This?") The backdrop is Madrid and its lively working-class neighbourhoods, where the immigrants from the various Spanish provinces share dreams, lives and fortune with a multitude of ethnic groups, and other races. At the heart of this social framework, three generations of women who survive wind, fire and even death, thanks to audacity, goodness and a limitless vitality.

Volver (2006) Review:

Pedro Almodóvar again taps deep into human emotions for this exquisite drama about mothers and daughters, about the things we wish we said, and that we hadn't.

Raimunda (Cruz) is a busy woman, holding her family together but refusing to give up on her dream of one day being her own boss. The aging aunt (Lambreave) who raised her is nearing the end of her life. As is Raimunda's lout of a husband (de la Torre). So now it's just Raimunda and her teen daughter Paula (Cobo). Then Raimunda's sister Sole (Dueñas) has an encounter with the ghost of their mother (Maura). Maybe she can solve some mysteries from their past, especially one involving a lifelong friend (Portillo).

Almodóvar approaches this with a disarming simplicity. It looks like a sunny, relaxed, bittersweet family drama, full of everyday humour, warmth and sadness. But underneath this is a film layered with complex emotions that slowly reach up and engulf us. As the story develops, it generates a subtle Hitchcock-like vibe, watching these women get into situations far over their heads, without ever panicking. Death is everywhere in this film--old age, cancer, murder, self defence--but it's just part of life.

Performances are simply gorgeous. This is by far the best work Cruz has ever done; Raimunda is tough and vulnerable, grouchy and deeply likeable. The high point is when she sings a song her mother taught her (which refers to the film's title, "to return" or "coming back"). Even if it's not Cruz's voice, Raimunda's soul is there for us to see. And the entire cast is this good.

From the opening scene, in which we watch, in passing, women cleaning the graves of their dead relatives, we sense that this is a film about how the dead never really leave us. This is a story about how humans touch each other so profoundly that it can never be forgotten. As Raimunda is given a second chance to sort out her life's loose threads, we are stirred to make sure that we don't let our own threads dangle any longer. Magic.