"When in Rome" is a story of Beth (Kristen Bell), an ambitious New York museum curator who loves her work more than anything. She is looking for a guy who she loves more than her work, since her last boyfriend dumped her because of her work ethic and passionate dedication for her work. On the spur of the moment she gets a call from her little sister who is getting married to an Italian which undeniably means that the wedding is going to be in... (drum roll please) Rome!
Caught completely off guard, Beth tries to counterbalance not only her presence at the wedding but also her current work assignment while she is there. And at the wedding, Beth meets Nick (Josh Duhamel) who is the best man at the wedding and falls head over heels in love with him. She tries to join ends with Nick only to see him with another woman, which is completely not what it seems. So in the heat of the moment, she goes to the famous Fonte d'Amore (The Fountain of Love) and pokes fun at the statue about how unfair and cold love really is. She chooses to save a couple of people from the spell of love by taking their coins from the fountain only to cast a spell on those very people so they end up falling in love with her. Nick actually goes out looking for her to find her in the fountain, popping up the question of whether she took a coin of his too.
Back in New York, problems arise at work and she bumps into the guys who are love-struck with her. A magician (Jon Heder), an artist (Will Arnett, a model (Dax Shepard) and a sausage salesman (Danny DeVito) are her stalkers and so is Nick. Can Beth ultimately pull off her pressure-driven work assignment as well as find Mr. Right in Nick? Or is it all a trance? Find out for yourself in this charming rom-com.
For me, the story was very promising and exciting at first but as we met the entranced and lovesick group of guys, I didn't really find a lot of really funny comedy in their actions and how they tried to impress Kristen's character. The comedy seemed more awkward and embarrassing which may appeal to some people as funny but hey, that's just my opinion. Some of the actors were pretty hideous looking to tell you the truth which didn't make them appealing to me at all in contrast to their actions, in spite of them being really nice guys. I really liked the character development between Beth and Nick although you are kept guessing whether his love for her is just a spell or is in fact true. The story however makes up for the messy looking middle part by having a heartfelt and emotional part close to the end, with each of the guys revealing their story and why they were looking for love. And ultimately there is a happy ending for each of them as well as Beth. I did find some plot holes in the story but I don't think you'll really mind them after seeing the film, despite that nagging feeling at the back of your mind that tells you the story should have been different if everything was according to the rules of the legend. The sights of Rome are indeed very beautiful and romantic as you'd expect, and who wouldn't want to fall in love there?
To sum it all up, the whole film was really sweet and what you'd normally expect from a rom-com. The concept and point of the film is that there is always someone out there for everyone to love and sometimes, their meeting is just plain coincidence. But when you really are in love and that person returns your feelings, nothing is going to stop you from being together. Not even the hindrance of a spell.
No comments:
Post a Comment