| Volver | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Pedro Almodóvar |
| Written by | Pedro Almodóvar |
| Produced by | Esther García |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | José Luis Alcaine |
| Edited by | José Salcedo |
| Music by | Alberto Iglesias |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Entertainment España |
Release date |
|
Running time | 121 minutes |
| Country | Spain |
| Language | Spanish |
| Budget | $9.4 million |
| Box office | $87.2 million |
Volver (Spanish pronunciation: [bolˈβeɾ], meaning "to return") is a 2006 Spanish comedy-drama[1][2] film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo, and Chus Lampreave. Revolving around an eccentric family of women from a wind-swept region south of Madrid, Cruz stars as Raimunda, a working-class woman forced to go to great lengths to protect her 14-year-old daughter Paula. To top off the family crisis, her mother Irene returns from the dead to tie up loose ends.
The plot originates in Almodóvar's earlier film The Flower of My Secret (1995), where it features as a novel which is rejected for publication but is stolen to form the screenplay of a film named The Freezer. Drawing inspiration from the Italian neorealism of the late 1940s to early 1950s and the work of pioneering directors such as Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, and Pier Paolo Pasolini, Volver addresses themes like sexual abuse, loneliness and death, mixing the genres of farce, tragedy, melodrama, and magic realism. Set in the La Mancha region, Almodóvar's place of birth, the filmmaker cited his upbringing as a major influence on many aspects of the plot and the characters.
Volver premiered at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or. It received critical acclaim and ultimately won two awards at the festival, for Best Actress (shared by the six main actresses) and Best Screenplay.[3] The film's Spanish premiere was held on 10 March 2006 in Puertollano, where the filming had taken place. It was selected as the Spanish entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar for the 79th Academy Awards, making the January shortlist. Cruz was nominated for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Actress, making her the first Spanish woman ever to be nominated in that category.[4]
- ^ Abele, Robert (12 December 2006). "Penelope Cruz, 'Volver'". Variety. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
- ^ "Volver". Entertainment Weekly. 10 August 2006. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Volver". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 13 December 2009.
- ^ Schwartz, Missy (3 November 2006). "Penelope Cruz's return to greatness". Entertainment Weekly. New York City. Retrieved 14 January 2018.