Return of the Ladies

''It smells of... farts, my mother's farts.''

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

Penélope Cruz: Raimunda

Director of Volver, Pedro Almodovar has captured the essence of female beauty with Volver, which in turn should probably be considered his greatest tribute to the female spirit.
Volver is a tad vulgar at times in its determination to capture it's leading star Cruz's shining charisma and power, with camera angles shooting down necklines, revealing alot for our imagination's to run away.

However, Penelope Cruz's powerful, touching performance anchors the film with profoundness and subtlety that overpowers any crude camera angle Almodovar can conjure.
A sometimes limited actress in Hollywood films, Penelope Cruz offers a stunning turn at last in Volver, in which her emotions are displayed in her full yet mysteriously dark eyes, the passion she feels ablaze.

Cruz plays Raimunda, a young mother who has left the village she grew up in in favor of the city. Both Raimunda and her sister Sole (Lola Dueñas) return home at the beginning to visit the village they grew up within, hearing rumors that their dead mother's ghost has returned to care for their dying aunt.
As time goes by, the women discover that this rumor might in fact be rooted in some truth. When their mother (Carmen Maura) appears to her children, secrets from the past are uncovered, that will unmask enigmas on what makes these women who they are.
The acting between the cast is a joy to watch, yet Cruz remains front and center in a star-revitalizing performance fully deserving all the critical and award attention she has received that year.

The title translates quite plainly as "to return" or ''Coming Back'', which takes various different meanings in Volver, whether it's the past, the dead, old unrevealed feelings or misunderstood relationships. Cruz won the best actress award at Cannes non surprisingly.

It works as a whole and even includes Cruz vamping it up as a Sophia Loren look alike. We even get to hear her sing in one segment which was pleasant, spirited yet passionate.

If you have never watched one of Almodovar's movies previously then Volveris a good starting point, featuring an untouchable Spanish cast, vibrant story-plot threads and a real, living, believable environment in which we are sucked into, and not thrown out of until it ends.

8/10