Usually not one for romantic dramas

[russell]

I was looking through my completed torrents and found Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Woody Allen's latest. I don't remember who recommended me this or where I got the idea to watch it, but it was surprisingly good... although the aesthetics of Scarlet Johansson, Penelope Cruz, and Rebecca Hall in starring roles definitely influenced my opinion

the things that made it legitimately good were Javier Bardem's (No Country For Old Men; Before Night Falls) typical flawless acting, and artistic cinematography unseemly for this sort of movie

I'd give it 7.5/10, but it would definitely be in my tops of the year if it was about an hour longer and completely developed all of the relationships with depth... and was more emotionally dynamic

Has anyone else seen this? Also what do you think of the usually horrible romantic comedy/drama genre.