Sasha Summers

I’m sure it’s no surprise to find that I grew a little misty eyed over the trailer to this movie – when the older Lorenzo rides up on his white horse and he and his Claire (from more than 50 years ago) walk slowly towards each other… still in love. Sigh!

But I knew the movie was going to be a disappointment. Surely the best scenes were in the trailer, that seems to be the studios cliff notes of more recent films. And as cute as she is, enough with Amanda Seyfriedalready. She’s cute – but she’s always A. Seyfried. (We won’t talk about Jennifer’s Body – shudder).

I was delighted to be proven totally wrong. I mean, yes, some of the best scenes from the film were in the trailer, but the whole film was a delight. I don’t know if I found Vanessa Redgrave’s performance so moving because this was made shortly after the passing of her amazing daughter, Natasha Richardson or if it’s just that she has such a quiet beauty and warmth about her – but she was the star of this film.

Don’t get me wrong, Amanda S. and the adorably charming yet stodgy British guy Christopher Egan were great. He more so than she, but that might be because he reminded me of my husband… Anyway, they had chemistry and you did so root for them to end up happily ever after.

My only complaint – the music. Two important scenes at the end of the film were overwhelmed with lyric-laden music versus what should have been a more rousing theme – help build anticipation. As it was Taylor Swift (in a song that I used to enjoy but admit to barely being tolerable anymore) and Colby Caillat (who I love) sang their ballads, I just wanted them to shush a little – theydidn’t ‘fit’.

If you’re in the mood for a cuddle with your someone special or you’re having a chick flick kinda evening consider ‘Letters to Juliet’. It’s not original or heart rending or tortured or overly sexy. It is a solid, enjoyable, heart warming film that made me smile and feel good. And let’s face it, we could all use a little inner happy once in a while.

3 1/2 Stars

I was enjoying a delightful critique meeting last night when I realized I don’t read nearly enough. I mean, I read a book a week – that’s not terrible, but it’s nothing compared to the amount of films I plow through.

I was raised in a household that embraced everything Hollywood – dinner conversation included movies but also their soundtrack, costumes, directors, cinematography and, of course, the acting. As a result I’ve a wealth of fairly useless information immediately accessible in my brain. I’ll get the random phone call asking, “Remember that movie with that guys on the mountain and the music sounded like something from Star Wars? Who was that actor?” and I can tell them is was Ethan Hawke – because that’s what I do. I’m a movie-addict.

I have catch phrases that mean nothing to people who don’t understand the kind of off kilter way my brain works, but perfectly summarizes things for me. Example: “They Willem Dafoe’d it.” Go ahead and guess what that means?

I love to read, love it. Love to discover a new story and meet new people and get lost in the pages of a book.

I guess I feel that way about film, too. A good movie can be just as transporting. There are flashes of films that, when I draw upon then, immediately inspire or move me. The movie might not have been the best, but if there’s a memorable scene – it sticks with me. The same applies for books.

That’s why I have a hard time, when talking about books, not bringing film into the discussion. Both movies and books are stories at their core. So when discussions turn to awesome books, I think of awesome stories, which frequently translates into film. Bottom line, whether I’m turning the page or having it played out for me – I truly love an intricately woven story.

I’ll be importing more of my movie reviews soon. And feel free to fire a movie question my way, I probably have the info in my head, might as well use it!