Screening between Friday 13th February and Thursday 5th March 2009 @ Watershed, Bristol

Vicky is sensible and engaged to be married; Cristina is emotionally and sexually adventurous; and Barcelona is the luscious, sensual yet vibrant backdrop of Woody Allen’s funny, open-minded and utterly engrossing film about impulsive romance.

Javier Badrem (coming full circle from the fashion guilty serial-killer in No Country For Old Men) plays the charming, seductive and saucy painter, Juan Antonio, who approaches these two American tourists and proposes on-the-spot that they join him for a weekend of wine drinking and love making. The friends are hesitant at first but join him and so starts a curious love-triangle. However, with the introduction of Juan Antonio’s passionate yet tempestuous ex-wife Maria (Penelope Cruz in fine, ferocious form) and the sizzling arguments they have, addictively swinging between English and Spanish, the triangle is turned on its head, becoming much more layered and complicated and, if you will, something of a love-octagon.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona delves into the true sentiments and complications of the heart without being pretentious, soppy or clichéd and is truly a celebration of love in all its configurations. Throughout the weaving storyline we explore all the perspectives of shared love; when it works and when it doesn’t; from the aggressive love seeker right through to society at large’s view and even those who wished they’d shared their love more but now it’s too late - ultimately underlining why this is a tragedy as much as it is a comedy.

www.watershed.co.uk

Matthew Whittle www.matthewwhittleblog.blogspot.com