Volver

(2006)*
Directed by Pedro Almodovar

Cast:
Carmen Maura - Abuela Irene
Penelope Cruz - Raimunda
Lola Duenas - Sole
Yohana Cobo - Paula

(Penelope Cruz) & (Lola Duenas) two sisters visit their aunts place they notice some things out of the ordinary. Even though their frail aunt is nearly blind she still bakes for them like a machine and on top of that there is a new exercise bike in her bedroom. When she dies the lady who looks after her swears she heard their dead mother warn her that their aunt had died.
Like any good ghost their mother Irene does come back to take care of unfinished business, but not in spectral form. It is hard to when you didn’t die in the first place. She appears to one of her daughters first & lives with her posing as a Russian.
Meanwhile another event has run its course with Raimunda’s husband Paco (Antonio de la Torre). You see Paco is, to put it lightly, a bit of a pervert and goes after his adopted daughter Paula. She defends herself and accidentally kills him with a knife that looks like it was taken from a Haloween set. Raimunda takes full responsibility for her daughters actions. No one must find out and no one really does.
Later we find out that there is a history of this sort of thing in the family. It is learned that Raimunda’s father raped her and their daughter is Paula. Apparently after this Raimunda and her mother weren’t on good speaking terms as well. As if this wasn’t bad enough (oh yes it gets worse) the father had an extramarital affair with another woman. When Irene has found out them both in a hut she sets fire to it killing both of them. She flees never to be heard from or seen again until she makes an appearance at their aunt’s place , looking after her, baking and of course riding an exercise bike.
But the old adage that you can’t keep skeletons in the closet (or ghosts under the bed in this case) holds true. Lola lets on to Raimunda that their mother is alive and the process of healing and forgiveness can begin.
Raimunda does an especially fine job of acting in her role. Her character is crafty but in a good way. What helps the movie is some of the scenes (particulary where Paco’s body is being hidden) that have an element of dark humor in them. This serves to lighten up the situation. Without them the movie would otherwise seem too serious. What spoils it all is the fact that their mother really is flesh and blood. When Sole and Irene hug for the first time after not seeing each other you almost want Sole to go right through her. Also we never hear Irene say anything to Sole about why she alive and not six feet under. So we find it strange that Sole is so uninterested in asking any questions. The movie didn’t really touch me though. Perhaps I had to be a daughter or mother to feel something. In the end it made me feel as dead as the Irene character should have been.

*In subtitles
2 stars