Volver - Movie Review

Almodovar's new movie, Volver, is set to capture everyone's heart. Volver is a melodramatic drama revolving around Penelope Cruz's character, Raimunda. Her mother died in a fire accident 4 years ago leaving her with her sister, Sole. Raimunda and her daughter, Paula, live in a small house with her irresponsible husband, Paco. One night, Paula murders Paco because he was about to rape her after confessing he is not Paula's biological father. Raimunda covers up for Paula and hides Paco's body inside an unused freezer in their neighbor's restaurant. That same night, Sole calls Raimunda telling her that their beloved Aunt Paula is dead. Raimunda's family life then shatters with one terrible secret about her late mother, Irene, that surfaces when Irene returns from beyond the grave to make contact with her astonished daughters.

Although Volver seems to have a soap-operatic story, it goes above such questionable domination by impregnating a healthy dose of comedy into the drama. Some of it is sophisticated, like the way the women rapidly peck at each other's cheek as a greeting, while other elements achieve sitcom levels of humor such as the way Sole hides her mother's identity from others by pretending she's a Russian hairdresser. As quirky as this humor gets at times, it never seems fake or contrived.

While Volver is basically concentrated on the women, it's a blot to see the role of men depreciated to a sketch of abstraction. It's hard to see why the male existence in the film is affronted when it's the capital achiever of the plot and cause of the demoralization of female affairs.