CAFx x Cinemateket: Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Join us for Big City Nights at the Cinematek rooftop as we bringing you to Barcelona
During a sun-drenched holiday in Barcelona, American friends Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) are swept into a whirlwind of passion and art when they meet the charismatic and irresistible painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem). With effortless charm, he invites them on sightseeing excursions as well as more intimate encounters. Before long, the impulsive Cristina gives in to temptation, while the cautious Vicky hesitates—only to find herself gradually captivated by the warmth and vibrant intensity of Catalonia.
The emotional turmoil deepens when Juan Antonio's complicated ex-wife, María Elena (Penélope Cruz), enters the picture—a beautiful, sensual, and fragile woman whose presence ignites sparks and heightens the tensions between all involved. Driven by desire, uncertainty, and an irresistible longing for freedom and experience, each character navigates the complexities of love with humor, warmth, and a keen understanding of human passion.
Woody Allen celebrates art, love, and the city of Barcelona in this visually sumptuous chamber piece. The entire cast delivers outstanding performances, from Patricia Clarkson as Vicky's down-to-earth relative to Penélope Cruz, whose Academy Award-winning turn as María Elena radiates both sensuality and vulnerability. A playful exploration of desire and emotion, the film is a sun-soaked journey into the heart of art, romance, and longing.
About Big City Nights
Join us for Big City Nights a film screening series bringing you to metropolises across the world from a rooftop in Copenhagen.
In this series, the city is more than just a backdrop. It serves as a crossroads of fate, where people meet and their lives take new directions. Architecture, distances, and population density all shape human relationships.
The films find their mood in the tension between public and private space. In other words, these are films that don't merely take place in a recognizable city—they are fundamentally rooted in it. Like a living organism, each city has its own rhythm and logic: sometimes grand and imposing, other times chaotic and untidy.
The big city also invites a distinctly cinematic way of thinking, creating intensely sensory worlds of light, sound, and texture—traffic noise, neon signs, building façades, night and day. From iconic metropolises to less obvious destinations—yes, Aarhus is included too—Big City Nights explores how cinema has portrayed the many facets of urban life over the years.
If you've already been to Rio, you'll recognize the atmosphere. If you're dreaming of Paris, Singapore, or Barcelona, this is a great place to start. Or gather a few friends for an evening of '80s nostalgia with Aarhus by Night. These films are made to be experienced together.
An important part of the experience is that every screening takes place at Himmelbio, the open-air rooftop cinema overlooking Copenhagen. Arrive early, take in the view, and perhaps bring a drink from the Filmtaget Café inside with you.
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