Volver (2006/I)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Pedro Almodóvar

Writer:

Pedro Almodóvar (writer)

Release Date:

26 January 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Mystery

Plot:

After her death, a mother returns to her home town in order to fix the situations she couldn't resolve during her life.

Plot Keywords:

Village | Fire | Car | Secret | Bus

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 44 wins & 47 nominations

Cast

Penélope Cruz	...	Raimunda
Carmen Maura	...	Irene
Lola Dueñas	...	Sole
Blanca Portillo	...	Agustina
Yohana Cobo	...	Paula
Chus Lampreave	...	Tía Paula
Antonio de la Torre	...	Paco
Carlos Blanco	...	Emilio
María Isabel Díaz	...	Regina (as Isabel Díaz)
Neus Sanz	...	Inés (as Nieves Sanz Escobar)
Leandro Rivera	...	Auxiliar Producción
Yolanda Ramos	...	Presentadora TV
Carlos García Cambero	...	Carlos
Pepa Aniorte	...	Vecina
Elvira Cuadrupani	...	Vecina
María Alfonsa Rosso	...	Vecina (as Alfonsa Rosso)
Fany de Castro	...	Vecina
Eli Iranzo	...	Vecina
Magdalena Brotto	...	Vecina
Isabel Ayúcar	...	Vecina
Concha Galán	...	Vecina
Mari Franç Torres	...	Vecina
Natalia Roig	...	Vecina
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pilar Castro	...	Ayudante de la presentadora (scenes deleted)
Carmen Machi	...	Hermana de Agustina (scenes deleted)
Raimunda Sánchez Expósito	...	Elderly woman who falls asleep in funeral
Agustín Almodóvar	...	Empleado ferretería (uncredited)
Luis Lattanzi	...	Hungry second camera assistant (uncredited)

Directed by
Pedro Almodóvar

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Pedro Almodóvar		writer

Produced by
Agustín Almodóvar	....	executive producer
Esther García	....	producer
Toni Novella	....	line producer

Original Music by
Alberto Iglesias

Cinematography by
José Luis Alcaine

Film Editing by
José Salcedo

Casting by
Luis San Narciso

Production Design by
Salvador Parra

Set Decoration by
Mara Matey

Costume Design by
Sabine Daigeler		(as Bina Daigeler)

Makeup Department
Jessica Aguirre	....	trainee hair stylist
Jessica Aguirre	....	trainee makeup artist
Ana Caballero	....	assistant makeup artist
Massimo Gattabrusi	....	key hair stylist
Esther Gázquez	....	assistant hair stylist
Ana Lozano	....	makeup supervisor
Mariló Osuna	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Rafael Carmona	....	first assistant director
Eva Sánchez	....	second assistant director
Mari Franç Torres	....	third assistant director
Jacob Santana	....	third assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Alejandra Loiseau	....	construction manager

Sound Department
José Antonio Bermúdez	....	sound
Jaime Fernández-Cid Buscató	....	boom operator
Ruth Márquez	....	assistant boom operator
Miguel Rejas	....	sound

Visual Effects by
Juan Alonso	....	digital compositor
Aníbal del Busto	....	digital compositor
Eduardo Díaz	....	visual effects supervisor
Sergio Garcia Abad	....	senior cgi artist
Ramón Ramos	....	digital compositor
Thorsten Rienth	....	digital compositor

Stunts
Ángel Plana	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Yolanda Cáceres	....	electrician
José Ramón Delgado	....	first assistant camera
Luis Lattanzi	....	second assistant camera
Joaquín Manchado	....	camera operator
Juan Pompas	....	electrician
Alberto Sánchez Beltrán	....	electrician

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ana Cuerda	....	key costume assistant

Editorial Department
Kathy Thomson	....	digital colorist

Music Department
Isobel Griffiths	....	orchestra contractor

Other crew
Yuyi Beringola	....	continuity
Sergio Díaz	....	location manager
Juan Gatti	....	credits
Marina H. Molini	....	production apprentice
Deborah Palomo	....	publicist

Thanks
Núria Moreno	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Canal+ España (participation)
• El Deseo S.A.
• Ministerio de Cultura (participation)
• Televisión Española (TVE) (participation)

Distributors

• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• A-Film Distribution (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (200?) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Applause Entertainment (2006) (Taiwan) (theatrical)
• GAGA Communications (2007) (Japan) (theatrical)
• GAGA Communications (2007) (Japan) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2007) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Gativideo (2007) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Hollywood Classic Entertainment (2006) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Mongrel Media (2006) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Monopole-Pathé (2006) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Odeon (2006) (Greece) (all media)
• Paradise Films (2006) (Russia) (theatrical)
• Pathé Distribution (2006) (UK) (theatrical)
• Pathé (2006) (France) (theatrical)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2006) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• Shaw Organisation (2007) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures Classics (2006) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• TOBIS Film (2006) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Universum Film (UFA) (2007) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

• El Ranchito (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Cinesol  generators provided by
• E.P.I.C.  camera equipment provided by
• London Session Orchestra, The  orchestra (uncredited)
• Rafael Catering  catering

Also Known As:

To Return (USA) (literal English title)

MPAA:

Rated R some sexual content and language.

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Italy:T | Italy:VM14 | UK:15 | Argentina:16 | Ireland:15A | Finland:K-15 | Netherlands:AL | Hong Kong:IIA | Sweden:11 | Spain:13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:M | South Korea:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Peru:14 | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Almagro, Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain

Company:

Canal+ España

Trivia:

Penélope Cruz became the first Spanish actress ever to be nominated for Best Lead Actress at the Oscars.

Quotes:

Raimunda: Are there things I should know and don't?
Sole: Oodles.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Volver

magnificent

A wonderful movie,a masterpiece. Whether or not it's the summit of the director's output so far will be a matter of taste, but it's definitely up there with Hable Con Ella and All About My Mother.

The story is dazzlingly well told. Even though it has the trappings of soap-operatic melodrama, sheer pace prevents any of the characters descending into self-pity. The emotional courage of these women (there are only four men with speaking parts in the entire movie, as far as I can remember, with not one of them being a major character) is what marks them out. Their complete involvement in life and, particularly in this film, death.

The photography is excellent. Beautiful shots suddenly throw an event into weird relief, such as the funeral cortège framed between the sides of a narrow street, or the landscape suddenly resonating poetically with the hypnotic turning of windmills.

The rhythmic editing is a trademark of Almodovar's. He's like a great jazz musician. Talking of which, his use of and sensitivity to music is another of his defining characteristics, and the score here, highly reminiscent of the same composer's work on Hable Con Ella, is again wonderfully melodic and romantic, matching the inner fire of the superb actors.

Penelope Cruz lights up the screen. As others have remarked, her performance seems to be something of an homage to Sophia Loren - but Cruz is her own woman: she dazzles in a to-die-for role. However, this is far from being a star-plus-the-rest movie: the entire cast is in every way up to the mark, not least the great Maura, who herself seems to be invoking another Italian cinematic icon - Giulietta Massina.

Unmissable.