Volver
User Score
8.7 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 195 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 177 out of 195
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 195
  3. Negative: 12 out of 195

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  1. JayK.
    Jun 9, 2007
    4
    This film doesn't have a single quality that made me feel like it was a worthwhile way to spend the time. The characters were boring and unrealistic; there were constant, pointless pervy breast and butt shots; the acting was adequate but nothing special; the story was lame (although probably could have been turned into something in different hands). Ugh...watch "Talk to Her" if you must watch an Almodovar.… Expand
  2. Colin
    Nov 7, 2006
    4
    This film was an almost complete waste of time. The plot is riddled with holes and dead end story-lines. And every "twist" is SO predictable. If this film were not made by a respected director, would any one care about it?
  3. J.H.
    Jan 27, 2007
    4
    I decided to see this movie after seeing such good reviews. I was totally disappointed. I did not buy into the story line.
  4. DanielD.
    Feb 5, 2007
    3
    It appears that most everyone who saw this film gave it a 9 or 10. A few gave it low scores and almost no one put it in the middle. So this is another "love it or hate it" sort of film. I have to put myself in the second category. Although I greatly enjoyed watching Penelope Cruz -- without her the movie goes down to a 1 or 2 -- it's obvious no one else in the movie did. HUH? Here�39;s a woman so lustrously beautiful she positively shines and one guy -- count him, one! -- notices her appearance. Okay, her husband must have at one time and maybe her father, but come on! This in Spain of all places. A few other impossiblities include that Penelope's character, having just "taken over" a restaurant after somehow disappearing from her regular cleaning job, can prepare and serve up a meal to 30 people with only a couple hours notice, that four women can lift up a freezer with a dead guy in it into a van, and that it's no problem to bury a guy four or five feet deep next to large trees where the ground has no roots, no rocks, and no other things I somehow always run into in my garden. Not to mention that a whole town somehow believes in a ghost who has to shop for supplies at the market. Maybe I was not enthralled by the whimsical spirit of the whole thing, but hey, that's just me, I guess. Finally, the big raison d'etre behind Penelope's psychology was a blatant and transparent ripoff from Chinatown (daughter, sister, daughter, sister). Gotta go. My girlfriend just invited me over to watch Midsummer's Night Dream. Don't know much about it, but I'm sure I'll love it.… Expand
  5. PnArdyPnArdy
    May 13, 2007
    3
    Boring and dull foreign drama.
  6. SimonB.
    Feb 16, 2007
    3
    Cruz's cleavage is the only thing that remains consistanly impressive throughout this painfully hokey movie. If you can displace your commonsense and the boundaries of reality for 2 hours you might be able to enjoy Volver, but i doubt it. The story branches off at times to what seems like some potentially interesting turns, only to result in many dead ends. Obviously, this movie is well liked from many of the other reviews. I can say that it is well filmed and acted, and even comes together in the end very well. But the painfully long, ridiculous (at times), and pointless story makes it all not worth it in the end for me. This movie will not be winning any Oscars.… Expand
  7. JIgnacioM.
    Nov 28, 2006
    3
    I like my movies with beautiful cinematography, well composed sets.....real-like engaging stories....and an all together a seamless work of art.....but all of Almodovar films are too complicated and never ending.....too much.....I wonder if he ever went to film school......The only movie I liked somwhat more than the rest was Talk to Her......and I liked bits and pieces of the rest of them......and I do like his homosexual and tranvestite characters ( he gets thumps up for using these charatcers in such a natural way) ....Maybe if an american director/ studio remakes his movies, maybe they would work for me.… Expand
  8. kobij.
    Dec 29, 2006
    3
    Overblown blah blah telenovela flat and meaningless much ado about very little.
  9. CarlosR.
    Feb 28, 2008
    1
    This was not an enjoyable Almodovar film. I enjoyed Bad Education and Talk to Her; however, I despised Live Flesh and All About my Mother. I expected the film to be on the better side, as most of his recent films were proving to be increasingly impressive. Yet, All About my Mother seems a little unshocking and I think that the comedic aspect was intended to be in the shock value of unexpected behaviors to normatively morose moments.… Collapse
  10. anthonyuk
    Apr 21, 2011
    0
    Another wonderful film from the Spanish maestro, wonderful female characters which you wam to, Cruz is excellent.

    You really care about the characters, funny, eccentric, simply charming cinema at it's best!

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 38 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 36 out of 38
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 38
  3. Negative: 1 out of 38
  1. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Stephanie Zacharek
    90
    Part noir-comedy, part ghost story, but it's mostly a potent reflection on how where we come from shapes us, in ways we can't understand until we've been away for a long, long while.
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  2. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Ray Bennett
    90
    It's very difficult to mesh fantasy with reality, but with great charm and a light touch, Almodovar shows exactly how it should be done.
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  3. Variety
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Holland
    90
    Peopled with superbly drawn, attractive characters smoothly integrated into a well-turned, low-tricks plotline, Volver may rep Almodovar's most conventional piece to date, but it is also his most reflective, a subdued, sometimes intense and often comic homecoming that celebrates the pueblo and people that shaped his imagination.
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