Vicky Christina Barcelona
By Marhall Fine
Rating:
Who's in it: Scarlett Johansson, Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem
What's it about: Two American girls spend a summer in Barcelona and find themselves both attracted to the same artist (Javier Bardem) in this Woody Allen romantic comedy.
Spanish dish: Johansson and Rebecca Hall play the girlfriends - Johansson the flirty adventurer, Hall the practical one - who are both wooed by sleepy-eyed Bardem. Oh yes, he also has a murder-minded ex-wife (Cruz) who once tried to kill him. Each of the women must come to terms with a personal hang-up, whether it's Hall's faithfulness to her fiancée, Johansson's easily changed mind or Cruz's hair-trigger temper. Bardem makes a sexy focus for all this feminine energy; he's a big seductive tomcat, casually eyeing his next partner (and ducking when the bullets fly).
Woody throws in some big laugh lines but his style here is more low-key - leaving you with a feeling that's somewhere between wistful and satisfied. At times, it's like watching someone else's vacation videos - but keeping an eye on the women (and man) in this film isn't hard to take.
Long story short: Spain looks great - and so does Scarlett.
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