Damn.

Damn, we should have done this over a year ago.

Seen Vicky Cristina Barcelona, we mean.

Sufficiently fortified with a glass of PinGin, we popped the Netflix DVD of Vicky Cristina Barcelona into the home theater last night.

Boy, the next 90-odd minutes were sheer bliss.

An absolutely delightful movie.

A classy affair, not crappy stuff like the one our South Indian simians are currently drooling over.

Lovely Romantic Quadrangle

Written and directed by Woody Allen, Vicky Cristina Barcelona brings together some of the finest actors around – Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson – and places them in a quaint, romantic quadrangle in Barcelona, Spain where before long everyone’s sleeping with everyone.

Not in a vulgar sextragavanza but in a loving, charming way.

Connoisseurs of kisses will find joy in the lengthy kiss between the characters of Javier Bardem and Scarlett Johansson.

Let’s Make Love

When American tourists and close friends Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) go to Barcelona, the former to learn more about Catalan architecture and culture and the latter fleeing from a broken relationship, they imagine it’ll be a brief holiday before returning to NYC.

Before long, at an art exhibition they meet the painter Juan Antonio Gonzalo (Javier Bardem), who invites them to join him on a weekend trip to the city of Oveido, where they can see the sights, have good food, nice wine and, hopefully, all three can make love.

And to make his invitation more compelling to the two pretty girls, he adds:

Life is short. Life is dull. Life is full of pain. And this is a chance for something special.

If you find this intriguing, consider there’s also Juan Antonio’s ex-wife Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz), lurking first in the background (we only keep hearing about her initially) and later a forceful presence in the foreground.

Greatly adding to the allure of the movie, its characters are a study in contrasts:

* Maria Elena, a mercurial woman given to occasional violent actions.

* Vicky in her own words – I was always someone who knew what exactly I wanted.

* Cristina – this voluptuous, restless woman doesn’t know what she wants. I only know what I don’t want, she tells us.

* Juan Antonio Gonzalo – Ah, this tender bon vivant is bent of making the most of life since it’s short, dull and full of pain.

Visually charming and built on the edifice of a strong narrative and amusing dialogs, Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a must-watch movie that drips class in every frame.

Just in case you were unaware, Penelope Cruz won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in this film.

To all the Indian baboons who are deluding themselves that the Kollywood buffoon Shankar is a classy film director, well, you schmucks ain’t seen class till you watch Woody Allen films like Match Point or Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

By the way, here’s our favorite line from the film (Juan Antonio to Cristina about Vicky’s determined refusal to accompany him on the trip to Oveido):

Does she always analyze every inspiration until each grain of charm is…uh…squeezed out of it?

SearchIndia.com strongly recommends Vicky Cristina Barcelona (available on DVD at Netflix).

  Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Woody Allen