SPOILERS DOWN THE PATH; THE DISCUSSION BELOW WILL NOT BE COMPREHENSIVE WITHOUT IT.
TREAD CAREFULLY. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.
THIS MOTION PICTURE IS OFFICIALLY AN AFFILIATE OF THE FILMMAKING PARAGONS.
Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a sexy romance flick! From the beginning, the director's voiceover guides you through the show. He introduces our main characters aka best friends Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) by telling us who they are, what they do and the core differences that make them up. To put it short, Vicky is realistic and Cristina is the opposite. Not only is the voiceover comedic at many instances, it's also non-intrusive when it glazes over all the simple facts we need to know to speed up our understanding about Vicky and Cristina!
It is then we are introduced to one of the most magnetic characters in cinema - Juan Antonio Gonzalo, played by Javier Bardem. His spontaneity, frankness and honesty is unbelievably alluring! For instance, he meets Vicky and Cristina for the first time in a bar, and he proceeds to invite both of them for a weekend getaway, where they could hang out, eat and possibly make love! The audacity is one thing, but the character also has a dark past revolving his ex-wife. So what happens when she reenters his life as Vicky and Cristina are drawn towards Juan forms the crux of this sweet motion picture!
The simple and arresting scenes flows you along the tide with swift and easy dialogues, albeit losing steam ephemerally after Vicky and Cristina go their separate ways. The proceedings reveal characters and evolve their relationships organically. Vicky's fiancée arriving at Barcelona and Judy's (Patricia Clarkson) extramarital affair are good surprises, but the advent of Maria Elena (Penélope Cruz) that shifts the dynamic of the three's relationship in an unexpected direction is the highlight for sure! You learn more about Juan through her, and how their 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' relationship has always been missing an important ingredient, which happens to be Cristina… or maybe any third half in the relationship triangle. The gun climax is a necessary wake-up call that points Vicky and Cristina back to their original character state as the feature and holiday ends, away from the unwarranted complication / temptation known as Juan.
Nobody could have done a more perfect casting, and the performances are natural! The movie's mood is nice alike a vacation, and as far as the filmmaking is concerned, everything follows the language cent per cent! Even a small attire change can inform you the current mental and/or emotional status of a character!