Rating of
2/4
Sweet as treacle!
MovieAddict - wrote on 02/19/12
Sophie, an aspiring journalist accompanies her boyfriend Victor (Gael Gabriel Bernal), a workaholic chef to Verona, Italy. While he gathers the finishing touches he needs to open up his restaurant in New York, she wanders around the countryside where she stumbles across the famous "Juliet wall" and discovers the charming custom of lovelorn women writing letters to four women who call themselves "Juliet" about their lost loves. Sophie takes the job as the fifth and youngest Juliet, and finds a letter dated back from 50 years ago pushed inside the wall that has never been answered. Sophie decides to answer it, and writes a letter back to Claire who is now a grandma. After waiting fifty years, Claire is amazed to get a response and immediately travels with her grandson Charlie (Chris Egan) to see just who Juliet is. Claire is delighted to meet her, although Charlie (Chris Egan), not so much. He fears that the quest to find Lorenzo Bartolini, her long lost lover will only break Claire’s heart. They all set out on a long journey to find the man Claire loved 50 years ago, but the question is will they?
First off, I'm a sucker for road trip movies and here the scenery is so lush and breathtaking you feel like you are in Italy. Much of the movie reminded me of Mamma Mia except set in Italy and without the ABBA songs. Vanessa Redgrave plays Claire who long ago lost her husband and still wears the ring her Italian love from years ago gave her. It is about finding your true love when you think that true love is lost. Now the film does have its cheesy moments and it was entirely predictable that Sophie would fall for Claire's grandson who is at first obnoxious and their dislike mutual.
