Vicky Cristina Barcelona Delicioso

Culling the best tips from today’s comments, J UK‘s link to David Denby’s review in The New Yorker warrants a bump to the main page:

Woody Allen’s “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” has a natural, flowing vitality to it, a sun-drenched splendor that never falters.

It’s all uphill from there, as Denby describes the principles in terms that are practically polymorphously perverse. Javier Bardem is “almost criminally attractive‚Äîsoft-spoken and erudite, decent in his way but relentless, a Don Juan brought back to life.” Rebecca Hall “can look radiant one minute and neurotic, tense, and gloomy the next, as if she were channeling Allen‚Äôs stumbling anxieties.” Scarlett Johansson is “at a stage in which her sensuality is more developed than anything else in her personality, but that configuration works for her.” As Sasha mentioned earlier today, the highest praise — and hottest potential awards buzz — is being reserved for Penelope Cruz as Maria Elena: “highly intelligent and talented but so tempestuous that she creates havoc wherever she goes. (She‚Äôs like a Frida Kahlo without the discipline to work.)”

Allen means for us to understand that a life of passion alone can lead to craziness. Maria Elena is an enactor of her own unhappiness; she makes accusations, steps across sexual boundaries, pulls out knives and guns. Cruz has never done anything like this: with her downturned mouth and wild black hair, she looks witchy and unbeautiful.

Sorry to inflict some of that unbeautiful witchiness on you guys in the photo above. Denby admires the screenplay, cinematography and thematic complexity too, so we can look forward to some substance with the “sun-drenched splendor.”¬† Is it possible we only have to wait 10 days for Vicki Christina Barcelona? How come that suddenly feels too long to bear?

(one-sheet after the cut)

Note to Oliver Stone: If you want to feature half-faces on your one-sheet, this is how it’s done.