Occasionally endearingly audacious, Woody Allen's screenplay for Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a further riff on the unique, unpredictable nature of romantic relationships among the human race
Comment
12/19/08
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)
82
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:185
Fresh:151
Rotten:34
Average Rating:6.9/10
Consensus: A beguiling tragicomedy, Vicky Cristina Barcelona charms with beautiful views of the Spanish city and a marvelously well-matched cast.
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $23,164,041
Synopsis: Two young Americans spend a summer in Spain and meet a flamboyant artist (Javier Bardem) and his beautiful but insane ex-wife (Penelope Cruz). Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is straight-laced and about to... [More]
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Penélope Cruz, Rebecca Hall, Javier Bardem
Director: Woody Allen
Reviews for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; Australian critics are listed first)
Top Critic[Allen's] best film in years.
12/26/08
Top CriticOne of the world’s most beautiful cities provides a stunning backdrop for a fairly routine comedy about a culture clash between Americans on holiday and their Spanish hosts.
12/19/08
Top CriticJohansson, fast becoming the Diane Keaton or Mia Farrow of Allen's mature years, treads a deft path between sensuousness, vulnerability and self-delusion.
01/02/09
Top CriticLove has never been so complicated as in Woody Allen's scrumptious Vicky Cristina Barcelona, a sexy romp involving a ménage a trois that keeps changing like the ever-changing tide of love itself
12/19/08
Top CriticThe humour is more situational, less assertive, less reliant on wisecracks and obvious punchlines.
01/15/09
Top CriticClick to read the article
04/23/09
It's literally difficult to believe that the person who made this picturesque, clueless, oddly misanthropic picture also made Annie Hall and Crimes and Misdemeanors.
08/15/08
Despite the big budget and name stars, Vicky Cristina Barcelona shows Allen’s 98th film stumbling into mumblecore, fumbling with love and class like a spoiled brat who’s never seen a Rohmer, Malle, Renoir or Ophuls masterpiece.
08/13/08
There's not enough jokes for it to be comedic and it's not compelling enough for it to work dramatically. It just kind of falls flat.
08/16/08
Vicky Christina Barcelona is really nothing more than rich people bitching. Now where exactly is the fun in that?
08/15/08
Vicky Cristina Barcelona is the cinematic equivalent of a book on tape: a movie that watches itself for you and tells you what it sees.
09/16/08
This is not as terrible as most of Allen's recent efforts, but it's thin to the point of scrawny, irksomely pseudo-intellectual and cringe-makingly creepy.
02/06/09
Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz) is the figure least obviously dictated by the Woody Allen template. And for that, you are eternally grateful.
08/15/08
...audiences once cheered the notion of a new Woody Allen film. Now, instead, we merely endure them.
08/15/08
Much of this film is blatantly told to us, narrated by a toneless male voice that obviates the need for actors to show thoughts and feelings.
08/15/08
Vicky Cristina Barcelona is basically the most arrogant film of the year, an occasion for Allen to feign interest in challenging heteronormic ideals when all he's doing is advancing a simplified view of female sexual agency.
08/09/08
Entonces aparece por fin Penélope y la película recién comienza, o al menos se pone más interesante. Lástima que ya han pasado como 50 minutos%u2026
01/24/09
Not unlike Neil Simon scrambling to be Henry Miller.
08/26/09
Isn't up to Allen's old school or new school standards. But it's pretty. And it shows, again, if you let Penelope Cruz speak Spanish instead of forcing her through English, her presence will darn near suck the film right out of the camera.
08/17/08
Latest News for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
January 27, 2009:
Milk Among GLAAD Nominees 
"Milk" has been a favorite on the awards circuit this year, and its hot streak has been extended courtesy of the GLAAD Media Awards, where it will compete in the Outstanding... More...
January 23, 2009:
Possibly distinguished solely for the first PG-13 lesbian smooching on screen ever, the film should be a trite, pleasing guy confection.
More...
January 19, 2009:
Actors And Crew Magazine: Possibly distinguished solely for the first PG-13 lesbian smooching on screen ever, the film should be a trite, pleasing guy confection.
More...
January 08, 2009:
Broadcast Film Critics Name Critics' Choice Winners
The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards were given on January 8, 2009, to honor the finest achievements in 2008 filmmaking. A list of nominees follows below, with winners in bold: More...
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