Volver
Winter 2007 Main series
Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 4:00pm
Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 7:00pm
Monday, January 8, 2007 at 7:00pm
Acadia Cinema's Al Whittle Theatre
450 Main Street, Wolfville, NS
Directed by Pedro Almod óvar
Starring Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo
Rated PG ·
2h 1m
Spain
Spanish
The latest film from acclaimed master filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar (Talk to Her), Volver is an entertaining, whimsical and fantastical film about the power of motherhood and friendship. Volver has won numerous awards, including Best Actress and Best Screenplay at the 2006 Festival de Cannes.
Raimunda (Penelope Cruz, Open Your Eyes) lives in Madrid, where she works hard to support her teenaged daughter Paula (Yohana Cobo, Only Human) and her couch-potato husband, Paco (Antonio de la Torre). When Raimunda discovers Paula in shock after having killed Paco in self-defense, Raimunda hides the body.
Shortly afterwards, Raimunda’s sister Sole (Lola Dueñas, The Sea Inside) reports seeing their dead mother, Irene (Carmen Maura, Free Zone). Determined to address unresolved matters, Irene — who pretends to be a Russian immigrant and hides under the bed whenever anyone calls — has returned from the dead to confront her daughters… and to assist Sole in her hairdressing business.
Almodóvar’s use of the supernatural takes his filmmaking in a wondrous new direction. Casting is brilliant across the board, but it is Cruz — one of Almodóvar’s regular collaborators — who dominates the screen, delivering a powerfully engaging and believable performance. With Volver, Almodóvar deftly combines his quintessential cinematographic talents: hilarious comic realism, bucolic melodrama and the celebration of womanhood.