If you like and remember the small budget New Hollywood comedies that bases its humor on witty, philosophical dialogue, you will like Barcelona. It’s about two white-collared American guys who move to the titular city for work, but while the film is entirely in English, the jokes’ punchlines form as a result of the clear contrast between what they believe of their homeland, and what the city believes of them. To be fair to these guys, the film makes clear some of it stems from the unease and disorientation they feel in a new city, which anyone, American guy or not, would likely feel in a new place. But in other scenes, the small talk, the reactions, and the silly ways Ted and Fred act reveal a certain bemusement towards earnest American idealism. Barcelona won’t work for everyone, but this comedy of manners paints a picture of a generation lost in the wider world around them.

The characters.