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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Weinstein Company


7.5

based on 36 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 84 votes
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MPAA RATING: PG-13 for mature thematic material involving sexuality, and smoking

Starring Scarlett Johansson, Penelope Cruz, Rebecca Hall, Javier Bardem, Chris Messina, Patricia Clarkson, and Kevin Dunn

Two young American women, Vicky and Cristina come to Barcelona for a summer holiday. Vicky is sensible and engaged to be married; Cristina is emotionally and sexually adventurous. In Barcelona, they’re drawn into a series of unconventional romantic entanglements with Juan Antonio, a charismatic painter, who is still involved with his tempestuous ex-wife Maria Elena. Set against the luscious Mediterranean sensuality of Barcelona, Vicky Cristina Barcelona is Woody Allen’s funny and open-minded celebration of love in all its configurations. (The Weinstein Company)

GENRE(S):	Comedy \| Drama \| Romance
WRITTEN BY:	Woody Allen
DIRECTED BY:	Woody Allen
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: January 27, 2009 Theatrical: August 15, 2008
RUNNING TIME:	96 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA \| Spain
LANGUAGE(S):	Catalan \| English \| Spanish

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

The film's freedom and control, its inspiration and focus, announce it as the work of a confident and mature artist.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

It's a summery idyll: his most entertaining picture since "Bullets Over Broadway" (1994) or maybe "Sweet and Lowdown" (1999).

Village Voice Scott Foundas

Allen has crafted a wry and thoughtful film about the peculiar stirrings of the heart that is certainly his most accomplished piece of work since 2005's "Match Point" and arguably his funniest in the eight years since "Small Time Crooks."

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Smoking, shouting, practically shooting off sparks, Cruz spreads a wildfire sexuality across Allen's sunny tableau of Catalan country picnics and scenic Barcelona ramblings.

USA Today Claudia Puig

As exhilarating, captivating and enjoyable as a summer romance in an exotic city.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

After years of diminishing returns, Woody Allen spectacularly returns to form with Vicky Cristina Barcelona, his funniest movie in years and arguably his sexiest.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

Through it all, Vicky Cristina Barcelona remains unaccountably romantic, a confirmation that love, elusive and painful as it can be, is still worth pursuing.

The New Yorker David Denby

Allen can be literal-minded about his thematic polarities, but, in this movie, he has put actors with first-class temperament on the screen, and his writing is both crisp and ambivalent: he works everything out with a stringent thoroughness that still allows room for surprise.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Offers potent romantic fantasy elements for men and women and a cast that should produce the best commercial returns for a Woody Allen film since "Match Point."

New York Magazine David Edelstein

Ought to have been an eye-roller. What a surprise that it's so seductive. The Woodman lives!

Washington Post Dan Zak

Vicky Cristina Barcelona is beautiful because Allen is now decidedly in control of this phase of his career, which blends the sharpness of his older dramas with a newly acquired expatriate hipness.

Empire Ian Freer

Within Allen’s recent output, Vicky Cristina is the highlight. See it for beautiful locales, an ambivalent look at human relationships and a clutch of great performances, especially from Cruz.

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

The two most hilarious characters, played by Spain's two most famous actors, Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz, are nothing if not cliches about tempestuous Latin lovers. But, boy, does Allen have fun with those cliches.

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

Cruz, who has never been able to fully show what she's capable of as an actress in an English-language film, takes to the role of the dark-haired hellcat with a sexy, bewitching fury.

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

With all this going for it, Vicky Cristina Barcelona should be better than it is. But there's something intriguing going on here. It's a movie about the sacrifices that people make to be happy.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

The movie goes down very easily.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The actors are attractive, the city is magnificent, the love scenes don't get all sweaty, and everybody finishes the summer a little wiser and with a lifetime of memories. What more could you ask?

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

Gotham gives way to Gaudi and the Met to Miro, but the sensibility is the same, the city as a precious treasure, and so is the message: Life may be hard and short, love may be flawed or doomed, but, my, aren't we blessed with lovely distractions.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

Sincere, delicately funny, a little staid, a little precious, and more interested in the ebb and flow of the heart than in the dubious rewards of sensational narrative twists.

Premiere Eric Kohn

Allen does craft a fairly observant account of human behavior, so that the solemn aspects don't put a damper on the humor, or vice versa.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Woody Allen's sexiest movie ever.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

I enjoyed it as much as any Allen film of the last 20 years.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

Although Vicky Cristina trips along winningly, carried by the beauty of its locations and stars -- and all the gauzy romanticism those enchanted places and people imply -- it reverberates with implacable melancholy, a sense of loss.

Wall Street Journal Joanne Kaufman

The narration, aided by a terrific score, does streamline the storytelling, and adds to it a faintly sardonic top note.

Time Richard Corliss

It's just fine. Not great; just fine.

Film Threat Matthew Sorrento

Let's not kid ourselves: There's something about Javi.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

The writing is zippy, the story spins like a top, and Bardem turns out to be the wittiest of leading men.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

Fitfully good.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

There's a terrific movie buried in Woody Allen's tale of two American girls broadening their horizons in Barcelona, and every once in a while tantalizing glimpses penetrate the twee narration and mannered performances.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

An atypical Allen film. Some of his usual themes are present - in particular, his neuroses about sex and love - but this movie does not bear enough Allen hallmarks to single it out as his work.

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

Bardem's performance is so good it tends to mask how lacking much of what surrounds it is.

Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir

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."

New York Daily News Joe Neumaier

There are two stormy performances from Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz that elevate Allen's melancholy thoughts on love and relationships.

Austin Chronicle Kimberley Jones

Something is terribly amiss when the American actors sound like English is their second language.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Allen's laziness is startling, even in so mechanical a filmmaker. He uses a monotonous narrator to tell us what the characters think and do, though he then shows them performing the actions that have just been described.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Watching Allen fart out a story when he has no characters is always painful, as people are defined through clumsy expository dialogue and ranked according to their cultural accomplishments. But the script here is lazy even by his standards.

The average user rating for this movie is 7.5 (out of 10) based on 84 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Taylor L. gave it a0:
This movie sucked. I can not believe i spent money to rent this movie. It has no point. 4 people started unhappy, 4 people ended unhappy.

Becquer M. gave it a9:
Unlike many triangular-love films, Vicky Cristina Barcelona has achieved the important feat of making a point and few (perhaps only those who have lived in Spain) have the capacity to understand the degree of perfection achieved by Penelope Cruz's portrayal of Maria Elena, the half psychotic, half genius artist who teeters on the brink of insanity; she makes this movie, and for that reason alone, this movie should be regarded as Woody Allen's best.

Bart S. gave it an8:
Gripping, well written and well casted. Overall excellent!

Vermin Deathstack gave it a7:
Thinking about this movie after seeing it, I’ve come to the conclusion that Allen’s recent films would be so much better if he used decent actors. Apart from Penelope Cruz, who was really good (and gorgeous), the others let the side down a bit.

J. D. gave it a10:
One of the best films I've ever seen. Catches very well a lot of human experiences and feelings and it's very nicely done.

Jay H gave it a9:
Woody Allen is a genius when it comes to character development. That is what makes his films so rich and interesting. He ingeniously weaves the characters together and it makes the story fascinating. Excellent performances, particularly Penelope Cruz.

Tony O gave it a9:
Come on guys! Why all the moaning? This is a funny, funny film. Lots of little homages to European film (Jules et Jim, etc) but at no stage does Woody's respect and fondness for film history overwhelm the entertainment. And the star quality on show here is a delight. In particular, Javier Bardem is an absolute hoot, but everyone else is in there having a great time as well. It is an ensemble show through and through. Not perfect - the film is made on a tight budget and sometimes it shows - but this is so much better written than every other American comedy this year (apart from Burn After Reading) that it is embarrassing. I chuckled about all sorts of elements of this film for a week afterwards. Great fun.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona The Weinstein Company

Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Weinstein Company