Outside of the Academy Awards in 2006, I had never heard of this picture, most likely because it is a Spanish film and was played in America on limited release. Although Volver left the Oscars without any brass, it still has been highly regarded by critics and viewers alike. Like most people my age would think, this movie doesn’t look awfully appealing, but I can assure you there?s a lot more to it than you would expect; it turns out to be a real deep and dark drama, with the odd laugh.

The main focus of Volver is on Sole (Lola Duenas), Raimunda (Penelope Cruz), and Raimunda?s daughter Paula (Yohanna Cobbo). The film begins with the group cleaning the gravestones of their parents who had died several years back in a fire. We don?t know much about the circumstances of the fire, but it becomes central to the plot and as the movie unfolds we learn a lot more. They return to the nearby village to visit with their ailing Aunt Paula, who despite being nearly blind and senile, still manages to upkeep her home and bake delicious lunchtime snacks. After visiting with Paula, the group heads across the street to visit with their friend Agustina. Agustina still has trouble dealing with her mother?s disappearance, which happened the same night as the fire that took the lives of Raimunda?s parents. The group sets off back to Madrid where their lives are about to be completely changed. Without giving away too much, some of the events that transpire are the murder of Raimunda?s husband, the accusation of a restaurant, the death of Paula, and the return of Raimunda?s mother. Believe me that is only the beginning of the exceptionally weird occurrences that happen in a short period of time during Volver.

The movie took a few turns that I never really expected it would. Sometimes it seemed a little over the top, but things always happened for a reason. In the end, Volver was quite interesting albeit a little silly.

In the past, I heard great things about the performances in this picture, but I have to tell you, they are not all that impressive. I was especially un-impressed with Yohana Cobo?s performance as Paula who seemed to have the same expression painted onto her face for the entire movie. Beyond that I was disappointed with the character depth as well; no one seemed to act very realistically based upon the situations they were thrown into. Everyone just seemed a little too laid back; it was as if all these life changing occurrences never happened. For me that made the movie seem quite unrealistic, and even though these characters were thrown into extraordinary circumstances, I never found myself actually caring for them.

Towards the end of the film, and at other random parts throughout, this movie has a very serious and even dark feel about it dealing with issues like rape, sexual abuse, incest, affairs and even murder. Somehow, with all these disturbing subject matters floating around, I felt this movie wasn?t even dramatic. Maybe the language barrier through me off, but I just thought this movie was fun, even a little adventurous. Regardless of its approach towards the subject matters, Volver was a pretty decent movie, and even though it?s not making its way into my top 10 or even 50, it was a lot better than I would have thought.

With the lack of an English audio track, this movie may appeal to even less people, myself I prefer to watch foreign pictures in their native language anyways. This way you don?t have to put up with ridiculous voice over, and can enjoy it how it was originally intended. So, if you think you would enjoy an optimistic look on some very disturbing subject matters, check Volver out. I wouldn?t go as far as too say you have to watch this movie, but I?m sure it?s better than a lot of you would think.

Video

Presented in a 1080p 2.35:1 aspect ratio, Volver makes an impressive debut, all the more impressive when you consider its low budget. Unlike many actresses seen in HD, Penelope Cruz looks better than ever. Flesh tones looked natural for the entire movie, facial detail was equally impressive. Colors, especially those found in the local restaurant, look superb; from reds to blue, every color looked extremely crisp and vibrant. Some of the many dark shots suffer from lack of detail, mainly due to softness; this can be noticeable when switching from the sharp vivid looking day shots. However grain and artifacts remained unseen for the entire picture. Minor problems aside, Volver?s transfer still remains impressive, another great addition from Sony Pictures.

Audio

Sony has included their PCM 5.1 and Dolby Digital audio tracks with Volver, and surprisingly both sound good, even if you can?t understand the Spanish Dialogue. The PCM track sounds best and yields impressive results with this front heavy track. Dialogue sounds crisp coming through the front channels and the musical scores makes good use of bass. Both dialogue and music complement each other well, without any balancing issues. Sony Pictures continues to impress with the inclusion of PCM tracks on all of their releases, hopefully other studios will start doing the same.

Special Features

Unfortunately, the special features don?t stand up to the great audio and video presentations. The features are lacking in both quality and quantity, a sure disappointment for fans wanting the full in-depth look at Volver.

• Audio Commentary – Commentary with Director Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz
• The Making of Volver – 8 minute feature on the making of Volver. Fans looking for an in-depth look of the creation of the film will be disappointed as this is merely a collection of behind the scenes shots played with music.
• Director and Cast Interviews – Interviews with Pedro Almodovar (10 min), Penelope Cruz (5 min) and Carmen Maura (8 min). The director and actresses talk about their roles and how much they enjoyed working on this film.
• Tribute to Penelope Cruz – 18 minute AFI tribute on Penelope Cruz. The interviews briefly talks about her becoming an actress but ultimately focuses on her role in Volver.
• Photo Gallery – A collection of production stills and posters from the film
• Previews

Final Thoughts

Volver was better than I thought, and although it is far from being a favorite, I think that it?s worth checking out at least once. The audio and video were both very good, but the special features were quite lackluster. All-in-all, it?s a pretty solid disc for the avid Volver fan, but for the rest of you stick with a rental.

Special Features List

• Audio Commentary
• The Making of Volver
• Director and Cast Interviews
• Tribute to Penelope Cruz
• Photo Gallery
• Previews