Volver

Year: 2006

Type: Drama

Director: Pedro Almodovar

Stars: Penelope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Duenas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo, Chus Lampreave, Antonio de la Torre, Carlos Blanco, Maria Isabel Diaz Lago, Neus Sanz

Production: Canal+

Volver is a revelation. It’s a singularly fantastic movie with interesting characters, a complex but captivating story, and clever twists and turns that keep you on your toes the whole way though. If you have the capability to rent, borrow or stream this movie, I hardily recommend you do so soon.
I wanted to get all the accolades out of the way at the top because despite everything above being absolutely true, to say anything about the film’s finer points would be, at the very least in the ballpark of minor spoilers. It’s one of those movies where tugging on any particular strand even to just tell you what is initially going on, will unravel the entire thing and handicap the entire experience for you. So again, I say it is a great movie. If you’ve ever taken any of my recommendations to heart and not regretted it - Seriously watch this one.

Now the plot: Volver opens with a pair of sisters Raimunda (Cruz) and Sole (Duendas); and Raimunda’s young daughter Paula (Cobo), cleaning and polishing the graves of their parents. The parents had died 3 years prior under mysterious circumstances, but the pair is more concerned as of late with their aunt Paula (Lampreave) who suffers from dementia. Paula insists that the ghost of their mother often visits her, a visage the sister’s blame on the blustering winds of the plains. But when tragedy strikes, Sole begins to suspect there might be something to Paula’s ghost story.

From there the story layers itself in a sophisticated mélange of farce, melodrama and magical realism that interweaves each character in surprising and untraditionally pleasant ways into the narrative. In doing so Volver encapsulates the many dark themes director Pedro Almodovar is fond of playing with (sexual abuse, family tragedy, death) and puts them into a story of refreshing vibrancy and joviality. This movie isn’t so much a tragedy with comedic elements but a comedy about tragedy that never ceases to enchant with its bold colors and even bolder choices.

Those familiar with Almodovar’s oeuvre know that this kind of approach to storytelling is not new to the, by now veteran filmmaker. Since the breakthrough success of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) the man has elevated melodrama with mature explorations of dark themes, deeply rich characterizations and an appreciation for the innately feminine. What’s more, Almodovar often has his characters go through a gauntlet but also infuses the frame with so much optimism and genuine compassion that it can’t help but effect upon every viewing.

But with the balancing act exhibited in Volver, there’s a lot more things to play with. The dichotomy between women maintaining relationships versus distancing and destroying them, the dichotomy of love versus brooding resentments, the dichotomy between an almost exclusively female cast having to contend with a story whose imprint of men are deeply felt – these are the meatier parts that make Volver such a fascinating watch.

At the center of it all is Penelope Cruz whose turn as a guileless put-upon wife sprouts forward like a rose blooming in windy, harsh terrain. She channels Sophia Loren and the colorful cadre of women typified by Italian neo-realist films. But with increasing ease and self-actualization, her Raimunda becomes something much more. For example, she glides across the screen confidently wearing the darkest of eye shadow and the boldest of push-up-bras, nearly always surrounded by primary colors. Yet nothing is ever innately sexual or meant to please anyone but herself. She’s empowered to be who she is thus her actions always are in the service of others – even when it’s obvious early on there are things she’s not telling them.



It’s that conceit, holding on to bitter secrets out of good intentions that provide the backbone of Volver’s complicated story. What keeps it whole and keeps it worthwhile is the film’s ability to honor its characters’ self-assurance without patronizing or idolizing them, making for a twisty-tale that not once rings false. Again I repeat if you haven’t seen this one; rent it, borrow it, stream it, then maybe own it. I promise you won’t regret it.
 

Final Grade: A