Letters to Juliet

Review by Anthony Morris

With the revival of the big screen romance now in full swing (thanks to the likes of The Notebook, The Time Traveller's Wife and Dear John), we're getting to the point where the novelty of seeing people falling in love has pretty much worn off.

As the romance genre is pretty much locked down as far as plot twists go, that really only leaves things like performances and scenery to make the difference between a dud and something worth checking out.

So the good news is that Letters to Juliet excels in both, thanks to Amanda Seyfried in the lead and an awful lot of time spent driving around Verona and the Italian countryside.

Sophia (Seyfried) is a fact-checker and would-be writer who goes on a pre-honeymoon with her would-be restaurant owner fiancee (Gael Garcia Bernal) to Verona, where he promptly spends all his time running around doing the kind of foodie stuff anyone else would expect from him.

Sophia, on the other hand, gets the sulks until she discovers a statue of Juliet (as in Romeo & Juliet) and the wall behind it where forlorn lovers stick letters asking for her help.

While the statue doesn't answer a team of her helpers does, and Sophia decides to give them a hand. She finds and answers a fifty year old letter, the woman involved (Vanessa Redgrave) not only gets her reply but flies out immediately to track down her old love with her surly grandson Charlie (Christopher Egan) in tow.

Sophia and Charlie don't get along: what's the bet that as Sophia tags along with them in the hopes of turning grandma's tale of love into an article that they'll fall for each other?

The story's surprise-free but it's pleasant enough, the countryside looks great, and while Egan is pretty wooden Seyfried is charming enough for two.

It does what you want from a romance and it does it with a light touch; just don't expect to remember it an hour after it's over.

3 out of 5

Letters to Juliet
Australian release: 13th May, 2010
Official Site: Letters to Juliet
Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Christopher Egan, Gael García Bernal, Vanessa Redgrave, Franco Nero
Director: Gary Winick