Monday, January 26, 2009

"I don't like her for you, I don't trust her"


How do you say "diva" en español?

Vicky Cristina Barcelona arrives on DVD tomorrow. Will you finally see it?
*

51 comments:

Anonymous said...

If Penelope is referring to Scarlett's acting in this movie, then I completely agree.

(still, wonderful movie)

alex said...

Yes plz. I've been waiting for ages.

Also, I'm watching Married to the Mob right now as I finish some homework. Michelle Pfeiffer truly is a national treasure.

becahdawn said...

Yay! I will finally see it! I'm embarrassed that I didn't go see it in the theatre just because I couldn't find anyone else who wanted to go. I'm not sure if that says more about my own pathetic-ness or that of the people I hang out with...

J.D. said...

I saw it in September (I think)! I am so seeing it again, though.

Cengiz said...

Seeing it? I'll be buying it! But back to your question...

"How do you say "diva" en español?"

Answer...
OSCAR

Dr. S said...

Yes!

Karen said...

Nope.

spartickes said...

Yes, yes I will. I really wanted to see it theatrically, but alas, I didn't. Great story, no?

Anonymous said...

It was on top of my Netflix queue, but for some reason I'm getting what was underneath instead. Not that I feel that bad, it's a couple of the Delmer Daves films that Warner Brothers finally released on DVD.

Don't forget that several Natalie Wood films are out next week!

Neel Mehta said...

One of the unusual (and noteworthy) features of the screenplay is that it seems to give Maria Elena almost a complete screen presence before Penélope Cruz ever shows up on the screen. Characters keep talking about her, and you feel you know her even before you're given a proper introduction. That alone makes this movie worth seeing.

Jorge Rodrigues said...

«After all, I have thoughts of killing you»

Oh and Penelope should have... Scar Jo is kinda lost right now isn't she? :D

Anonymous said...

Maybe it's because I'm Spanish and living here you can get easily tired of Pene's face (by the way, the shortage Pene also means penis in Spanish), but I think Rebecca Hall deserved as much praise as her. And about Scar and Javi, I think they were bored when filming, like they didn't know the camera was on them.
To answer the question you'll have to ask Sasha Fierce: "A diva is a female version of a hustler"...

Anonymous said...

Say what you will about Woody Allens shaky track record, but I love the fact that we never have to wait too long for him to bring out a new film.

Anonymous said...

"i'm not talking about talent i said gee nee usss - gee nee uss!" my fave quote.

ZiZo said...

Diva in spanish is: "Niñata de mierda! Niñata de mierda! Lo sabia lo sabia como lo sabia"

Anonymous said...

You american people don't realize how funny she is in spanish especially in this performance. She told in an interview she had to translate most of the spanish sentences in Spain bad language. The result is so excellent, fresh, real and actual. It really surprised me so much the way she talks in the movie, it's like I was talking with my brother, I couldn't believe this was a movie directed by Woody Allen.

The "niñata de mierda" is in the streets of Spain and so Almodóvarish. I hope Allen realize that she put a lot of herself in this performance and that she improves most of her sentences with such grace. The conversation about chinese is also quite funny.

Anonymous said...

In spanish Diva is Diva, everyone understands the word. And sadly Pe's-we never say Pene, it would be hilarious- behavior in Spain is too much close to Brandangelina's

I think Noecito is absolutely right. In Spain, we find Rebecca Hall's performance more interesting.

By the way, I find the film a bit dull. The cine dubbing ruins it for the great majority of the audience -only a few watched it properly-, and the movie looks like a collection of postcards from Barcelona and Oviedo, too much obvious, too much tourist.

Anonymous said...

""I don't like her for you Oscar, pick me!""

Anonymous said...

In Spanish we also say DIVA. In fact, it's a SPANISH NAME.

Catherine said...

I know I keep saying this, but goddamn does it irritate me: yet another film that hasn't opened theatrically here yet.

Billy Held An Oscar said...

Netflix shipped my copy last night.

Anonymous said...

It's frustrating when other people speak for you, isn't it?

Who has asked all the Spaniards about VCB to say that "in Spain we In Spain, we find Rebecca Hall's performance more interesting"?
Personally nobody asked me and as it happens I don't agree.
(and please, don't go to see dubbed movies, Allen's or Speed Racer, it doesn't matter, the actors' voices are as part of their performances as everything else).

I do think Rebecca Hall's performance deserved more attention and credit she's received. And I do think the whole movie deserved more attention in general.

For me, my personal test for a great performance it's if I can picture someone else doing the part (to distinguish if the merit it's on the part or in the performance). And honestly I can't picture someone else playing Maria Elena, in the same way that I can't picture someone else instead of Dianne Wiest in Bullets Over Broadway. But on the other hand, yes, I could imagine some other choices for the ScarJo part.

Anonymous said...

Bad performance. No Oscar period...

Anonymous said...

Agree with Iggy, I'm Spanish and I thought Pé was best in show by a mile, though Hall is good as well. Being from Asturias myself I also enjoyed the postcards from Oviedo :-)
my favourite line reading (she's off screen when she says it): "¿Qué estoy de invitada en mi casa?"

Leo

Michael Parsons said...

She was wonderful, and I still think ex's of Tom Cruise are contractually obliged to win on their second nomination (below the addendum where they are not allowed to speak of his man love). However I would like to see Viola or Marisa win here.

Anonymous said...

I loved everything about this movie.

Anonymous said...

Saw this way back in August. Loved it, and hopefully Penelope Cruz will win the Oscar next month. I might actually buy the DVD now.

Anonymous said...

I found Rebecca Hall's acting even more distracting than Scarlett's (people actually enjoyed her?). Even Javier seemed bored in his role. It's funny though, I didn't find all the bad acting really took away from the fun of the film. Maybe that's just because Penelope was so great!

Brian24 said...

Saw it in twice in the theater and will buy the DVD. A very entertaining film in the beginning when it's just Javier, Scarlett and Rebecca. But it really kicks into high gear with Penelope's first scene, and it never looks back. She, like Maria Elena, is a force of nature.

Nate, I was surprised that you didn't mention VCB when you named Patricia Clarkson as a Best Supporting Actress finalist. That look on her face as she walked down the dock... Few actresses can say so much without saying a word.

Anonymous said...

I also wanted to add that I thought Scarlett was great in this movie--possibly because in a lot of ways she was PLAYING a bad actress. It kind of worked perfectly.

Anonymous said...

For some reason, Penelope Cruz has never "done it" for me. I thought she was quite adept in VCB but nothing earth-shattering (and the role could have been).

Now Sonia Braga - that was a Latina who made my toes curl!

Anonymous said...

I will definitely pick this up later today. Cruz was so sensational here, and, by understanding Spanish, one can easily discover many more layers in her work, especially with regards to her phrasing.

Anonymous said...

I really think this is the most brilliant bilingual performance I've ever seen... and the use of language is key in understanding its genius. (Pene is our international megastar for the 21st century, period.)

Oh and is it just me or does Vicky Cristina Barcelona have amazing art direction? I mean, just looking at that picture... beautiful & detailed work.

Pablete said...

Once again, Penelope Cruz's ethnicity is European.

Anonymous said...

To Iggy: A bit rude, don't you think? I suppose we can comment about the film or its actors, do we? and who went to see dubbed movies? Not me, that for sure. Your two last paragraphes, I agree.

To Leo, I love Asturias, and its landscapes, but I love some Allen's films, and I would have liked a deeper narrative in this one. I'm OK with locations, it's only it's too much.

Luis said...

She should win. Come on Academy make up for that Volver snub!

Anonymous said...

To My P is a Diva( I'm sorry I don't write the whole nickname, but I find it awkward addressing to it ;)).

Actually, I don't think so, I've just read it to see if I was. It maybe be a rough and quick comment partially in response to yours, but I don't think there's anything that may have offended you.

Not only I have no problems reading other people's opinions, it's actually one of the reasons why I visit blog and sites like this one, to read opinions other than mine. I do have issues when someone makes his own opinion pass for the general opinion of a whole country (!). And that's why I replied to your comment, to say I didn't agree.

Regarding the dubbing, I inferred from this:

"The cine dubbing ruins it for the great majority of the audience -only a few watched it properly-, "

it was you who had seen it dubbed and it was others who had seen it "properly", as you didn't use the inclusive "we" you had use before ("we in Spain") or "of us" as for instance in "only a few of us watched it properly". If that wasn't the case and I misinterpreted it, my apologies for that.

Anonymous said...

God - are you all so young?? No one wants to rave about Sonia Braga with me?

Anonymous said...

Indeed, to any who had the misfortune of watching this dubbed in Spanish: que pena! Question: did they keep the original sequences of Pe and Bardem yelling or do a voice-over?
I guess this film could be appreciated dubbed in another language, as long as it's not in Spanish! You miss out on the bilingual aspect!!! (like Babel, Caramel... I love multilingual films!).

Best appreciation of this film is a spaniard watching it in VOS, next to someone who doesn't speak Spanish and so reacts the same way Vicky and Cristina do in the movie! Fun!!!

Iggy... if only we could avoid the dubbing! If you can, pues vaya suerte!!!

I'm stuck in Alicante where one cinema dedicates 1 screen to VOS movies 4 nights a week, 1 film a week, usually 2-3 months after it's been out. And their taste is somewhat questionable... So if you really want to see a movie here you suck it up and watch it dubbed... and then if by some miracle it hits the screen in VO then you head to see it again if you loved it enough.

The closest decent VO cinemas here are the UGC (for commercial films) and the Albatros (for more independant / world fare) in Valencia which is 200km away... a.k.a. 70€ between gas and tolls. Too much even for a movie addict lite me!

sigh!!!!

Anonymous said...

Crazycris, I guess you're right, though Alicante is by no means a bad place to be stuck.

Sometimes I forget how privileged I am movie-watching wise by living in Madrid. And even here you can't see all the movies in their original versions (it's also true I'm not interested in seeing all the movies around, either). It's just that I have become so active against dubbing to the point that if there's a movie I want see and only the dubbed version is available, I prefer to wait for the DVD edition so that I can choose. So, I guess somehow unconsciously I expect the same from other people, which is unfair to say the least.

Don't take me wrong, as many others I've grown up watching dubbed movies on TV and I loved the movies anyway, but when you first listen to the actors original voices, you just don't want to hear the dubbing again, if possible. And, besides I've noticed lately dubbing (on TV series and on movies when broadcast on TV) is really awful. Some years ago it was considered quite a skillful craft and well-respected because sometimes dubbing actors managed to get the amazing achievement of improving the original ones (Steven Seagal movies success in Spain sure owes a lot to his Spanish voice twin).

But right now, you can catch on TV Calista Flockhart dubbed wih the same voice as Cameron Diaz or Drew Barrymore, or Kevin Costner and Bruce Willis sharing more than they would probably want to.

In the end I guess I'm an optimist, because I think it's in our hands to change the way movies are released. If all of us, increasingly, declined to see dubbed movies, maybe one day they'd stop existing.

(Sorry to the rest of the readers for having monopolized this comments line with tangent local issues).

Anonymous said...

Iggy, it's OK.
It's not easy to express myself in english, but I'll try my best. I watched it in o.v., sorry about the confusion. Critics over here watched it the same way, I suppose, and say wonders about Rebeca. It's not only me, I assure you.

Crazycris explains it very well. It's so common the dubbed version that sadly everything is lost in translation for the majority of the audience in this country, so Pe doesn´t impress them at all. Even she is dubbed by someone else, so nothing makes sense.

Anonymous said...

I'm so renting it... if only to revaluate Penelope :)

Anonymous said...

She's the female version of a hustlaaa...

Anonymous said...

"If Penelope is referring to Scarlett's acting in this movie, then I completely agree."

I second that!

Anonymous said...

OK, My P is a Diva, let's give peace a chance :)

You bring up so many interesting issues. That people keep on seeing a movie when they know the Spanish actors don't dub themselves is beyond my comprehension, really. Except for the specific reasons of non availability of the original version.

I only know Banderas said some years ago in a TV show that he had decided to stop dubbing himself because his voice isn't specifically trained for that, so that mixing it up with professional dubbers made it sound awkward. And I have to agree with him, I saw Interview with a Vampire dubbed (shame on me!) and it was painful to listen to. I don't know if Cruz and Bardem have gone the same way and for the same reasons.

I also agree that Pe's face is all over the place, she should stop doing those L'Oreal ads, really (though here, there's also the added negative public image the gossip shows have spread about both Bardem and Cruz because they are too discreet about their relatioship).

Regarding critics, I find it hard to rely on their honesty any more. There's the issue of having an agenda depending on the media group they write for and if what's been reviewed belongs to the same group or not. And as a Spaniard, you're probably aware of the media fights between Meadiapro (one of the producers of VCB) and Prisa, etc.. But, in this case it's just that I know a case of a literary critic that was fired after writing a negative review of a novel published by the same media group he was writing for. So, I guess I'm biased.

Even critics I've respected my entire life such as Maruja Torres have written better reviews for Mamma Mia! than for VCB, which I think is just insane. In fact, I've become so skeptical I really doubt they see the movies in their original versions. One may like Hall's performance better, one may point out at the film's flaws, but getting over the Bardem-Cruz exchanges as no remarkable or just mentioning them "de pasada" as I have read in some reviews, really make me suspicious. You make like them or not, but when one sees the movie, one has to agree they are remarkable.

Even if I make an effort and give dubbing the right to exist, lol, I think when there are bilingual parts in a movie, at least those parts should be kept. Weren't the parts in Italian in The Godfather saga kept as such? (I don't really know, it's been so long, but you get my point.)

Anonymous said...

Iggy, I get your point, and you are right about dubbing, ads, and critics, although there was some kind of consensus about VCB. And maybe Maruja simply likes Mamma mia! more. X-O

About dubbing, Banderas said that, and I think the same is valid for Pe and Bardem. And I think they are right, mixing their voices up with professional dubbers made it sounds awkward.

If Pe-Pene-Cruz wins the Oscar, and this is possible now Kate is out of the eccuation, I'm afraid no many people over here will be able to understand the reason.

Anonymous said...

, I'm not talking about talent. Genious, I said. Gennniousss.,

Anonymous said...

^I have no idea why those quotation marks just displayed as commas. Whoops.

NATHANIEL R said...

billybil --SONIA BRAGA is indeed worth gawking at! i'm old enough to know

NATHANIEL R said...

for as much as i complain about the lack of distribution in the US for subtilted films, i'm glad that the dubbed version are almost always failures ;) they try every once in awhile and it just doesn't go over.

thank god.

Anonymous said...

So in greek and german was the translation "Niñata de mierda! Niñata de mierda! Lo sabia lo sabia como lo sabia" exactly translated :-p lol