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Volver (2006)

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Top Critics

Average Rating: 7.8/10
Reviews Counted: 160
Fresh: 147 | Rotten: 13

Volver catches director Pedro Almodovar and star Penelope Cruz at the peak of their respective powers, in service of a layered, thought-provoking film. This magical tragicomic melodrama may be Almodovar's most restrained work to date, but it still features his trademarks: a strong attention to color and detail, a celebration of the trials and tribulations of women, and, of course, the inestimable Carmen Maura. The lovely Penelope Cruz hasn't shone more brightly as she does here.

Average Rating: 7.9/10
Critic Reviews: 42
Fresh: 40 | Rotten: 2

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Movie Info

Two sisters learn that the bonds of family don't always end after death in this gentle observational comedy drama that marks celebrated Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almod�var's 16th feature. The story explores the interactions between three generations of women in a Spanish family. Raimunda (Pen�lope Cruz) was born and raised in the apocryphal village of Alcanfor de las Infantas, in La Mancha, Spain. However, she now resides in Madrid, where she works as a janitor. She is married to Paco (Antonio de

R, 2 hr. 1 min.

Drama, Art House & International, Comedy

Directed By: Pedro Almod�var

In Theaters: Nov 3, 2006 Wide

On DVD: Apr 3, 2007

Box Office:$12.8M

Sony Pictures Classics

Volver Trailer & Photos

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Cast

Critic Reviews for Volver

All Critics (165) | Top Critics (43) | Fresh (153) | Rotten (13) | DVD (20)

It's clever and entertaining. It's marvelously deft, but never daffy. It works well enough, despite feeling like the most conventional film this great, envelope-pushing Spanish director has ever made.

January 19, 2007 Full Review Source: Orlando Sentinel

| Comment

Roger Moore

Orlando Sentinel

Top Critic

Pedro Almod�var whipstitches a movie from patches of those mother-daughter melodramas Mildred Pierce, Bellissima and Two Women and makes it seamless and original, funny as it is fierce, breathtaking as it is life-affirming.

December 28, 2006 Comment

Carrie Rickey

Philadelphia Inquirer

Top Critic

The Return rattles its chains for a spell, but it doesn't linger -- it quickly leaves.

December 22, 2006 Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle

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Amy Biancolli

Houston Chronicle

Top Critic

Volver is rich, crazy, ambitious and filled with heaven and earth in a way that no other filmmaker can touch. It is a flawed beauty, but the beauty is so much more important than the flaws.

December 22, 2006 Full Review Source: Detroit News

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Tom Long

Detroit News

Top Critic

If Almodovar is in great form, Cruz is even shapelier, with no small number of gags involving her cleavage.

December 22, 2006 Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press

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Terry Lawson

Detroit Free Press

Top Critic

Volver qualifies as a must-see movie for the director's fans or for those who wish to admire one of the greatest living cinema artists.

December 22, 2006 Comment

Matt Weitz

Denver Rocky Mountain News

Top Critic

Almod�var's maturity navigates not only the thin lines between comedy and drama and between body and spirit, but also between rebellion and acceptance

August 28, 2009 Full Review Source: CinePassion

| Comment

Fernando F. Croce

CinePassion

It's up to charm to twinkle our attention away from the loose threads and daytime TV plotting.

July 2, 2009 Full Review Source: I.E. Weekly

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Amy Nicholson

I.E. Weekly

Pen�lope Cruz shines in mother-daughter tale.

July 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media

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Cynthia Fuchs

Common Sense Media

At the center of this hectic universe, [Cruz] never misses a step and may even elevate what Almodovar originally conceived.

June 21, 2008 Full Review Source: Film Threat

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Matthew Sorrento

Film Threat

With all its unexpected twists and turns, the story still unfolds naturally, like some gaudy Mediterranean flower.

May 12, 2008 Full Review Source: Style Weekly (Richmond, VA)

| Comment

Thomas Peyser

Style Weekly (Richmond, VA) Source: Style Weekly (Richmond, VA)

Pedro Almodovar's Volver is amazingly bright, fresh and clean for a film dealing with murder, adultery, incest, malignant disease and the occasional supernatural apparition.

February 28, 2008 Full Review Source: BrandonFibbs.com

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Brandon Fibbs

BrandonFibbs.com

Cruz certainly turns in the most impressive performance I've ever seen of hers.

July 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis

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James Plath

Movie Metropolis

Hollywood, take notice: If you hand Penelope Cruz a role with more depth than the paper it's printed on, this is what you'll get.

April 27, 2007 Full Review Source: Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)

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Jonathan R. Perry

Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)

Until now, you may not have considered Penelope Cruz the modern-day successor to Barbara Stanwyck and Joan Crawford. But director Pedro Almodovar's delightful 'Volver' could change your mind.

March 30, 2007 Full Review Source: Kalamazoo Gazette

| Comment

James Sanford

Kalamazoo Gazette

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Audience Reviews for Volver

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Its a real domestic film that hits many issues like home, family, and life. Penelope Cruz's performance was fantastic as well as Almodvar's directing. A great watch!

January 30, 2012

paul oh

Super Reviewer

A high rating mostly for the way in which this plot manages to turn and return so seamlessly, covering all kinds of ground: abuse, poverty, murder, cancer, familial bonds, lies, secrets, love and more. As always, Almodovar's characters are very rigid people, set in their ways and keeping their walls up, focused on one

January 18, 2012

Daniel Perry

Super Reviewer

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Latest News for Volver

May 20, 2009:

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