vicky, cristina, barcelona

the thing i really liked about woody allen's latest vicky, cristina, barcelona is the fact that there is no sugar-coated hollywood ending. the characters stay true to their characteristics until the end. everything felt so real.
the reason why i wanted to see the film was barcelona. having lived in that city (even if for a very short period), i have such fond memories that i wanted to relive them through glimpses of allen's barcelona. snatches of gaudí architectures, parks and the cafés thrilled me to bits, of course. but i ended up falling in love with cristina. what a character! a free spirit, she goes with the flow knowing only what she doesn't want. although i would love to claim that i am more like cristina, i am afraid i have more of vicky -- who succumbs to the socital norms -- than cristina.
the music was fantastic too. you cannot but hum the title track, "barcelona" when you leave the theatre.