REVIEW
Just as a crisp, juicy slice of watermelon is synonymous with summer barbeques and pool-side parties, Pedro Almovodar cannot be mentioned without the themes of Hispanic culture and celebrated female characters popping up in the same conversation.  His latest cinematic triumph, the gripping and powerful Volver, doesn’t buck his trademark style but instead utilizes his unique view to beautifully paint the struggle of one strong and tenacious woman.

Bold, vibrant, saturated with colors and rich characters, Volver takes us into the gritty existence of two sisters struggling with the repercussions of their tumultuous family history. 

Living in relative poverty, Raimunda (Penelope Cruz) eeks out an existence by cleaning up the Madrid airport and taking opportunities as they come.  Her sister Sole (Lola Duenas) runs a covert hair salon in the privacy of her home. The two, having left the small Spanish village they grew up in to make ends meet in the big city, are as different as can be.  Sole is skittish, timid, unsure.  Raimunda is blatant, bold, fuelled by a powerful and deep seated-desperation. 

When Raimunda’s daughter Paula (Yohana Cobo), refuses the advances of her drunk quasi-father Paco (Antonio de la Torre), Raimunda doesn’t miss a beat.  She covers up the murder and even has time to take over a local restaurant in the process.
 In the midst of the cover-up, Sole informs Raimunda that their Aunt Paula (Chus Lampreave) has died.  When Raimunda sends Sole to the funeral in her stead, Sole discovers their mother’s ghost hiding in the trunk of her beat-up little car.  Irene (Carmen Maura) had come back from the dead to care for the dying Paula and to make right the relationships with her daughters she had left hopelessly wrong.

With a multi-layered plot that wanders aimlessly through two hours, Volver arrives at no specific destination by movie’s end.  Is it a murder mystery?  Is it a look into the pitfalls of mother/daughter relationships?  Or is it a contemplation of the after-life and whether we will be afforded the chance to apologize for our past failures?  To all the above, Volver answers a resounding, “Yes.”

Rather than grow increasingly disconnected from itself with multiple stories and themes, Volver evolves, pulling each detail into an intricately woven tapestry of culture, character and family history.  The Spanish word Volver means to come back, to return  . . . and that is exactly what the film does.  Stories are dropped.  New developments are highlighted.  Then with a suddenly rush, we return to an earlier plot line, enriched and enlightened by the mini-side trip.  With Raimunda’s mother coming back as a ghost, with Irene and Raimunda’s shared history repeating itself in the relationship between Raimunda and Paula, Volver focuses on returning in on itself . . . in a beautiful, gripping and powerful way.

Boasting a very talented cast, the film nonetheless belongs to one woman.  Penelope Cruz inhabits the role of Raimunda and proves herself more than worthy of her academy award nomination.  With Alomodovar’s gentle highlighting of feminine ticks and details as a springboard, Cruz makes Raimunda strong and vulnerable, human and superwoman all at the same time. 

When Raimunda decides to sing for the first time in years, she looks compassionately at her daughter then downs her mojito with a look of determined capability.  It is in real and genuine moments like these, contrasting moments of humanity and super-strength, that Alomodovar and Cruz mutually create a dazzling female lead.

The cinematography helped to showcase Cruz as well.  Shots, jarringly composed to blatantly focus on Cruz’s assets, highlight that which helped to cause the troubles of Raimunda’s past.  We return to these shots throughout the film just as we return to shots of feet spied from beneath the spare bed in Sole’s home. The reoccurring shots, along with a focus on vibrant, saturated reds, greens and purples, exemplifies once more the film’s theme – Volver – to return, to come back.

All in all, Volver doesn’t rush things.  It takes its time, encouraging its audience to go on a journey with no destination, to sit and think, to ponder, to reflect.  And with colorful and vibrant cinematography, insightful direction and engrossing performances, an audience can do just that.  Volver is powerful, engaging, a true cinematic treat.