Volver (2006)

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

Director:

Pedro Almodóvar

Writer:

Pedro Almodóvar (screenplay)

Stars:

Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 61 wins & 93 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Penélope Cruz	...	Raimunda
Carmen Maura	...	Irene
Lola Dueñas	...	Sole
Blanca Portillo	...	Agustina
Yohana Cobo	...	Paula
Chus Lampreave	...	Tía Paula
Antonio de la Torre	...	Paco
Carlos Blanco	...	Emilio
María Isabel Díaz Lago	...	Regina (as Mª Isabel Díaz)
Neus Sanz	...	Inés
Leandro Rivera	...	Auxiliar Producción
Pepa Aniorte	...	Vecina
Yolanda Ramos	...	Presentadora TV
Elvira Cuadrupani	...	Vecina
María Alfonsa Rosso	...	Vecina (as Alfonsa Rosso)

Storyline

Raimunda, her daughter Paula and her sister Sole travel from Madrid to the windy and superstitious village of Alcanfor de las Infantas to visit the grave of their mother Irene, who died years ago in a fire with her husband. Then they visit Irene's sister Paula, an old senile aunt that raised Raimunda after the death of her parents that insists to tell them that Irene is alive and living with her; later, they go to the house of her neighbor and friend Agustina, who gives a support to Paula. They return to Madrid, and after a hard day of work, Raimunda meets her daughter completely distraught at the bus stop waiting for her. When they arrive home, Paula tells her mother that she killed her unemployed father Paco, who was completely drunk and tried to rape her. While Raimunda hides his body, Sole calls her to tell that their beloved aunt Paula has died. The next morning, Sole travels alone to the funeral, and when she returns to Madrid, she finds her mother hidden in the trunk of her car...

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Plot Keywords:

rape | death | secret | abusive father | child abuse | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexual content and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Penélope Cruz became the first Spanish actress ever to be nominated for Best Lead Actress at the Oscars.

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Goofs

(at around 1h 30 mins) When Agustina is talking on the TV show about her mother's vanishing, she says that it happened "hace ya casi cuatro años" ("nearly four years ago"), yet her lips are clearly saying "hace ya casi tres años" ("nearly three years ago").

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Quotes

Irene: Don't say that, Raimunda, or I'll start crying. And ghosts don't cry.

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Connections

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007)

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Soundtracks

A Good Thing
by Saint Etienne
Written by Sarah Cracknell, L. Oakley, M. Waterfield
Administered by Kobalt Music Group Worldwide Kojam
(p)2005 by Saint Etienne
Under exclusive license to Sanctuary Records Group Ltd
ISRC: GBAJE0501385

User Reviews

100% Almodóvar

I saw this film yesterday and it got me thinking well after I had left the cinema. It made me cry and it made me laugh. It is a choral film where women (as usual with Almodóvar) have the upper hand. I'm not a big fan of Penélope but I must admit she's really up to scratch this time. She has clearly fed on Sofia Loren to come up with the very credible character of Raimunda: tight skirts, high heels and generous cleavage. Carmen Maura and Lola Dueñas are simply magnificent. Also Chus Lampreave as Tía Paula (even in a too-short appearance inspired in Almodóvar's mother) is superb. Almodóvar himself has admitted that this is one of his most personal films, set in his home region of La Mancha and full of memories of his own childhood. Great music too. The moment of the tango ("Volver" by C. Gardel) turned into flamenco really makes you break in goose pimples. However, it is not Penélope's voice, but flamenco-star Estrella Morente's. If you like Almodóvar, you will certainly like this film.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Classics Pictures [United States]

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

26 January 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

To Return

Filming Locations:

Almagro, Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

EUR7,450,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$202,000, 5 November 2006

Gross USA:

$12,899,867

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$85,585,177

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+ España, El Deseo, Ministerio de Cultura

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1