Film Review with Robert Mann – Letters to Juliet

13th June 2010

Letters to Juliet ****½

Director Gary Winick is no stranger to the romantic comedy genre, having previously directed both 2004’s 13 Going On 30 and 2009’s Bride Wars, and now he is adding another romantic comedy to his resume in the form of Letters to Juliet, the second romance film to star Amanda Seyfried this year after the Nicholas Sparks adaptation Dear John, although this time with her in the leading role rather than a too little seen supporting role. Winick’s track record to date in the romcom genre, though, is very hit and miss. Of his two previous romcom directorial efforts, the former, while hardly being an original film, proved a truly delightful slice of Hollywood escapist fluff, the kind of film that was undeniably clichéd but made it work in its favour, being superbly romantic and full of charm and warmth (and a personal favourite of this critic). The latter, however, was one of the first of the recent slate of Hollywood romantic comedies to completely miss the mark. In its case any clichés present were not translated into the warmth of the former but rather bogged the film down. The big mistake, though, and one that has been repeated in a number of romantic comedies during the last year, was the failure to deliver on the romantic aspect of being a romantic comedy, the film not actually being about romance at all but rather a petty rivalry between two brides that was difficult to actually care about. Suffice to say, the film was very poor. Letters to Juliet has provided an opportunity for Winick to put the mediocrity of Bride Wars behind him and return to the success of 13 Going On 30 but does he achieve this and avoid creating yet another dire Hollywood romantic comedy?

Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), a young American writer, travels to Verona in Italy – the city where Romeo met Juliet. Here she finds a wall where heartbroken lovers leave letters to Juliet asking her advice in matters of the heart. Meeting a group of volunteers who respond to the letters, Sophie finds and replies to a letter that has been lost for 50 years. This inspires its author Claire (Vanessa Redgrave) to travel to Italy and find her long-lost soul mate, Lorenzo (Franco Nero). Claire’s grandson Charlie (Christopher Egan) isn’t too happy about this, but Sophie asks Claire if she can join her on the search. Together with Charlie, the two women set off in a red Fiat to hunt for Lorenzo. Meanwhile, as Sophie’s relationship with her boyfriend (Gael Garcia Bernal) hits a rocky patch, she begins to have feelings for the handsome Charlie.

More a romantic drama than a romantic comedy, Letters to Juliet works so well because director Gary Winick, along with screenwriters Jose Rivera and Tim Sullivan, place the emphasis purely on romance as opposed to the lame gags that have been the focus or many romantic comedies in the last year. Sure, the film is sugary and fluffy, not to mention being very predictable and featuring its fair share of clichés (as is generally the case with most Hollywood romances) but the vein of sweetness that runs through the film ensures that romance fans won’t care about these things. The film is unashamedly romantic from start (the opening credits play over a montage of images of romances from throughout history) to finish and the beautiful Italian settings make for a perfect romantic backdrop. Also, we actually get two love stories for the price of one – that of Claire and that of Sophie – making this a film that will be appreciated by viewers both young and old. Of course, the film does portray an idealistic rather than outright realistic view of love and romance, one that may be too saccharine for less sentimental moviegoers, but delightful performances from both Amanda Seyfried and Vanessa Redgrave, and charming performances from Christopher Egan and Franco Nero make for a film that is simply a delight to sit through. The on-screen chemistries work well, us never doubting that Redgrave and Nero’s characters truly belong together, and Seyfried and Egan developing a warm chemistry as the film progresses, even if the speed in which they go from a hate-hate style dynamic to being in love with one another does stretch believability a bit. Such chemistry is not present between Seyfried and Gael Garcia Bernal, although this is clearly deliberate as from the outset their characters are obviously not destined to end up together. So, all in all, Letters to Juliet is a heartwarming and enchanting romance that will make you believe that true love really can exist. Sure, it may not be one of the most original romance movies to come out of Hollywood but it is undoubtedly one of the genuinely romantic in some time. Gary Winick (for Bride Wars) all is forgiven.

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Review by Robert Mann BA (Hons)

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