Blu-Ray Review: Vanessa Redgrave Shines in ‘Letters to Juliet’

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CHICAGO – Vanessa Redgrave’s role in “Letters to Juliet” could not have come at a more poignant time in her life. She plays a starry-eyed woman in her twilight years, desperate to reconnect with her childhood sweetheart. He’s played by Franco Nero, the man Redgrave fell for on the set of 1969’s “Camelot.” She was Guinevere and Nero was Lancelot. Yet they didn’t marry until 2006.

That’s why it’s profoundly difficult to avoid getting a lump in your throat when Redgrave’s long lost love materializes before her very eyes, on a horse no less (you half expect him to be singing, “If Ever I Would Leave You”). It’s also impossible not to be moved during an earlier moment, when Redgrave pauses before a gravestone, fearing that her love is truly gone for good. This sequence probably didn’t require much acting from the screen legend, who recently mourned the deaths of her daughter, brother and sister. When Redgrave raises her glass for a toast and says, “Here is to all our loved ones, wherever they may be,” the film becomes moving on a transcendent level.

HollywoodChicago.com Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0
Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0

What a film “Juliet” could have been if it was an intelligently written, intricately textured romance between its two old flames rekindling their passion. Unfortunately, that’s only a small part of this standard-issue chick flick from Gary Winick, a director whose work can be as lovable as “13 Going on 30” and as hatable as “Bride Wars.” The story centers on Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), a beautiful young fact-checker for “The New Yorker” who stumbles upon a possible story while on vacation in Italy. She’s there with her aloof boyfriend (Gael García Bernal), who’s too busy touring vineyards for his NYC restaurant to pay her much attention.

Thus, Sophie zeroes in on a tourist attraction in Verona, containing the supposed house of the legendary Juliet Capulet. Women from all over the world leave tear-stained letters in her courtyard, seeking her advice on matters of love. These notes are answered by the “secretaries of Juliet,” a saintly group of women who are all too pleased to have their privacy invaded by an opportunistic journalist. Sophie herself writes a response to a fifty-year-old letter written by Redgrave, who drags her skeptical grandson (Christopher Egan) to Italy so she can find her supposed true love— the man she left a half-century ago.

Amanda Seyfried stars in Gary Winick’s Letters to Juliet.
Amanda Seyfried stars in Gary Winick’s Letters to Juliet.
Photo credit: Summit Entertainment

It doesn’t take a Shakespearean genius to guess how this all turns out. Though the plot reeks of phoniness, the cast compensates with their sunny charm. The astoundingly photogenic Seyfried practically seems to be glowing under the lens of cinematographer Marco Pontecorvo, who savors the magnificent beauty of each location. Egan appears to be a jock channeling Hugh Grant when his character is called upon to be uptight and fussy just so he can chill in the final act. Bernal is so charming and handsome that he has to work overtime to convince viewers that he’s the wrong man for Seyfried, and his over-the-top performance is a riot.

But this is Redgrave’s film through and through, despite the fact that her role appears for only a third of the film’s running time. There’s an enchanting moment when Redgrave breaks out into a girlish smile as she reminisces over bittersweet memories. She has one of the saddest smiles in the cinema, and it’s same smile that caressed the face of her daughter, Natasha Richardson, during a similar scene in the equally charming (and otherwise unremarkable) chick flick, “The Parent Trap.” Redgrave’s face conveys a deep sense of having lived, which allows her to bring authentic wisdom to a line like, “Life is the messy bits,” even while the surrounding film is entrenched in pure fantasy.

Letters to Juliet was released on Blu-Ray and DVD on Sept. 14, 2010.
Letters to Juliet was released on Blu-Ray and DVD on Sept. 14, 2010.
Photo credit: Summit Entertainment

“Letters to Juliet” is presented in 1080p High Definition (with a 2.35:1 aspect ratio), accompanied by English and Spanish audio tracks, and comes equipped with both the Blu-Ray and DVD versions of the film on one double-sided disc. On the audio commentary, a slaphappy Seyfried continuously renders her director speechless by making random observations such as, “Is that Chris Egan’s butt crack?” and “Did Vanessa just use her middle finger to scratch her head?” Winick makes the odd choice to discuss the film as if assuming that the viewer hasn’t seen it before. He says that he wanted to give Verona, the fourth most visited location in Italy, particular exposure, and explains that Stuart Wurtzel’s production design enhanced the romanticism of Juliet’s courtyard. What’s most revealing is how Winick had to cut many of the more interesting elements of the film, if only to keep the routine plot chugging along. Like so many studio projects, this film shoot was clearly rushed for purposes of the narrative, while failing to pause long enough to explore any intriguing nuances.

The disc’s ten minutes of deleted and extended scenes accentuate this fact all the more, by offering footage that would’ve enhanced the film overall. There’s more scenes with the secretaries, notably Isabella (Luisa Ranieri), who was originally meant to function as Sophie’s best friend. There’s also more dialogue scenes for Nero, who admittedly isn’t the equal of Redgrave. His line readings are serviceable at best. Two brief behind-the-scenes featurettes include interviews with authors Lise and Ceil Friedman, whose book functioned as the film’s source material and was optioned by Caroline Kaplan and Ellen Barkin. Juliet is praised for being strong and courageous, though to me, she’s still a hormonal teenager with serious depression problems. I imagine her offering this bit of advice: “If all else fails, visit your local apothecary.”

‘Letters to Juliet’ is released by Summit Entertainment and stars Amanda Seyfried, Christopher Egan, Gael García Bernal, Vanessa Redgrave and Franco Nero. It was written by Jose Rivera and Tim Sullivan and directed by Gary Winick. It was released on Sept. 14th, 2010. It is rated PG.

HollywoodChicago.com staff writer Matt Fagerholm

By MATT FAGERHOLM
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
matt@hollywoodchicago.com

Larry's picture

Vanessa Redgrave

This was a stereotypical romcom. It succeeded as such. I saw it with my wife who loved it. I liked it well enough only because I like Amanda Seyfried. Vanessa Redgrave’s role was corny and embarrassing though. Her supposedly child-like smile was worn constantly throughout the film, but it struck me as sort of ironic, as if she was self-conscious about acting in a dumb chick flick.

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