Universal Studios
Rom-coms, destination films and food movies… They were basically made for each other. They have key components that are absolutely critical to their successes.
First, there has to be a mildly star crossed romance. The destination must be beautiful and the exteriors have to be well staged, lit and shot. The food must be highlighted, with well executed kitchen scenes and you need to finish the film hungry.
You, Me & Tuscany hits on all the prerequisites.
These films are designed to be light, adorable, and engaging.
They aren’t popcorn crunchers like comic book films. They aren’t gut wrenching, like heavy dramas. They aren’t thinkers, like spy/conspiracy/mysteries.
They are the intermezzo of film, a lemon sorbet.
They are a palate cleanser on a rainy Saturday morning when you don’t want your day to start yet and need something to make you smile, giggle and sigh.
“Failed” chef turned professional house sitter, Anna (Halle Bailey), stumbles into an accidental journey of discovery to Tuscany.
In a series of Three’s Company level misunderstandings, she purports to be engaged to the conveniently absent Matteo (Lorenzo de Moor). While the lie sits in place, she meets Matteo’s dashing brother, Michael (Regé-Jean Page) Michael is the responsible one, committed to his family and owner of a vineyard and winery. Hilarity, romance, and a little drama ensue.
SIDEBAR: My children are grown, so Disney movies aren’t a regular part of my life anymore and I don’t really see the point of live action remakes of classic animation, but what the hell was everyone’s problem with Halle Bailey as Ariel. She is beyond delightful and she can sing.
You know what’s going to happen, I know what’s going to happen, everyone knows what’s going to happen. In some movies this ruins the film. The execution makes everything seem ham handed and cliché.
When done correctly, each slight twist and turn makes us feel like we are wrapped in a warm comforting blanket and it’s ok to believe in fairy tales again. You, Me & Tuscany is definitely the latter. As I sat on my couch watching it, all I kept thinking was, this is adorable.
Every woman who leads films like this needs her crew of allies. The first one I remember is Hector Elizondo becoming allies to Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, but it is a tried and true formula that works. Anna’s allies consist of an amusing taxi driver (Marco Calvani), a pregnant best friend back home (Aziza Scott) and most of Matteo and Michael’s family, led by their sister Francesca (Stella Pecollo). One of the rules of rom-coms is the sidekicks have to have some of the best lines in the film. Once again, this film hits a home run.
The family expected the mercurial Matteo to run the family restaurant. His passions lay elsewhere and he left Tuscany to pursue a career in international real estate. When Anna arrives on the scene, everyone is immediately smitten with her and we can’t help but get carried away in the warm embrace of the family’s love, acceptance and almost instant inclusion of Anna into their dynamic. The family is all Italian actors with long experience and they playfully amp up their ethnic quirks for our enjoyment.
Lorenzo, the aforementioned taxi driver if the advice he gave her is the best he can do. Lorenzo responds, “I advised you to tell the truth, but your way is much more romantic.” His timing, bemused expression and the overwhelming feeling that we are all in on the joke made it the perfect line at the perfect time.
Laura Sangiacomo informing Julia Roberts she’s Cinderella. Jean Stapleton informing Meg Ryan she’s brave. Nico Santos telling Constance Wu her skin is so dry his face hurts. There is a history of rom-com sidekicks delivering some of the funniest, most biting, or starkly truthful lines in these films.
Matteo shows up and the lie begins to unravel and the very light drama ensues. The very alluring Desiree Popper provides a beautiful distraction, but in a true stroke of directing or editing genius, they didn’t let her become much more than a very pretty prop. She could have derailed the film, and instead she was a little extra spice on the side.
Writers Ryan and Kristin Engle deliver on the promise of those that came before them. While Ryan is best known for video game adaptation, Rampage, a bizarrely fun romp in its own right; his wife Kristin has no professional credits before this and I get the sneaking suspicion she read an early draft and dove in to add the missing ingredients.
Director Kat Coiro handled the rest. Tuscany and the food are definitely side characters in the film. The Tuscan exteriors are shot beautifully and the light from the Tuscan countryside warms us through the screen. A simple scene of Anna making bruschetta is so hunger inducing my mouth began to water.
There are references to Under the Tuscan Sun in this film, because that was such an iconic destination, journey of self-discovery film set in exactly the same place, it would have been bizarre to ignore it. That film wasn’t a romantic comedy. It was philosophical and introspective and while it was beautiful, it wasn’t funny. It wasn’t supposed to be.
This film is supposed to be light and funny and it delivers. At one point the opera singing gardener, Giuseppe (Emanuele Pacca) is asked where Anna came from, his response, “She’s an angel, she fell from the sky,” and with the context of how he came to that conclusion I literally laughed out loud, which almost never happens to me anymore.
Kat Coiro’s directing career stretches back 20 years, but it’s mostly consisted of episodic TV. This isn’t her first feature, and I sincerely hope she does more. She executed this so well, I could envision a Rob Reiner, Meg Ryan level collaboration where Halle Bailey falls in love with Bridgerton cutie Regé-Jean Page in a variety of different ways for the next fifteen years while the world falls in love with the both of them over and over again with Coiro in the director’s chair. It’s possible the world needs a little of that right now.
Cute couple everyone is rooting for: Check.
Beautiful location beautifully rendered for us to drink in and enjoy: Check.
Food that makes us hungry just by looking at it: Check.
Also, watch for the credits. There are a couple of improv scenes and they have a fun outtake reel that rolls alongside the credits. It’s funny and worth the extra few minutes.
Extras include commentary and featurettes
