I have to
admit, I don’t, as a general rule, have the girliest of tastes when it comes to
films. In fact, as you may have noticed, some of the stuff I really “root” for
is positively boyish. However, this does not mean that I do not appreciate a
really good romantic film about true love when it comes my way. Well, a good
friend of mine and I have been meaning to sit down and have a girly evening
watching this for a long time. In the end, it simply did not happen and I
watched it on my own anyway. But I see her point. This is seriously “girly
evening” material. And well, the weekend is nigh, if you have no other plans… I
say go for it! (Sorry boys, you may have to sit this one out).
Sophie
(Amanda Seyfried – her name meant nothing to me although I recognised her face,
she has been in quite a few things lately, think Mama Mia! (another Sophie
ironically) God that was a long parenthesis). Ok from the top. Sophie is a fact
checker for the New Yorker. She is engaged to passionate chef Victor (Gael
Garcia Bernal – one word. Yum) and they are getting ready to get married. They
will, however, take one last “pre-honeymoon” to Verona. It’s the city of love
and Victor needs to have a series of meetings with his suppliers. But more than
that, it is the couple’s last chance to spend some down time together before
hectic stuff such as wedding planning kicks in. At least that is what Sophie
hopes. In reality however, Victor is completely in his element setting up deals
for his restaurant and Sophie is well… Bored. So she takes to exploring the
city and ends up in Juliet’s house. There she meets the “secretaries of Juliet”
– well you know how that one works, right? Ok maybe not. So this is an actual
thing, there is, as you probably know a “Juliet’s House” in Verona, supposedly
the house the real Juliet lived in. At said house, women (mostly – though
presumably men can too) can write letters to Juliet and attach it to the wall
of the house, asking for advice about broken hearts, love and other such
problems. Then the “secretaries of Juliet” collect these letters and write
answers. Assuming you included an address that is. Anyway, so, Sophie who is
already passionate about writing chips in and while helping discovers a letter
that has been lodged in the wall, forgotten for 50 years. Touched by the story
told in the letter, Sophie writes an answer, hoping against hope Clare (Vanessa
Redgrave) will somehow receive her long overdue answer. Clare does receive the
letter. And this is the beginning of a series of life changing events for
everyone. But especially Sophie.
Ok so this
is basically a story about true love. And about the timeless quality of love.
But most of all, I reckon, it is about time. The film gently criticises our
American (read modern) life style, where we are all attached to our
smartphones, multitasking, doing five things at once and not allowing anything
the time it is properly due in its own right. On the surface (rather
unfortunately some might say) it makes a rather banal comparison of that
lifestyle and the one in Italy. Oh you know. It’s different in the Med, rolling
hills, sipping wine “they do it differently there, none of that rushing about”
all that jazz. I mean it is true up to a point but honestly, I doubt Rome or
Milan are any less busy then New York, seing as they are among the big business
capitals of the world and all. But I mean it is a cute way to think about it I
suppose – especially if you don’t think about it for too long or too deeply.
Besides, I do agree that one has to stop and breathe every now and again, and
it is so easy to forget to do that in the modern business world. But then, of
course, there is love. True love. And the fact that it is timeless. A gentle
reminder, perhaps, that things like love, friendship, life are all timeless. It
is pointless trying to squeeze them into the little slots that we have broken
our days into. One has to allow them their own time to grow and develop. And
sometimes, we have to make a choice between “work life” (as we call it in
Turkish) and life. I mean, one has to admit that one doesn’t usually have the
luxury of going for one or the other, but you know. You can lean towards one or
the other, certainly. And you should be very careful about which direction you
lean in… If you get what I mean.
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