Caffeinated Clint
By Alicia Malone
Amanda Seyfried is really making a name for herself as a great romantic lead. She charmed us in “Mamma Mia”, made (some) people cry in “Dear John”, and now she’s bringing her natural beauty to another letter writing film, “Letters to Juliet”.
Seyfried plays Sophie, who travels to Italy for what is supposed to be a romantic holiday with her fiancée Victor (Gael Garcia Bernal). Unfortunately restaurateur Victor is more interested in checking out the local produce, so Sophie is left to sightsee Verona by herself. While visiting the house of Juliet, where Shakespeare’s character supposedly met Romeo, she discovers a volunteer group who call themselves the ‘Secretaries of Juliet’. This group of women reply to every letter left by love lorn women, who are all hoping to get advice from the fictional Juliet. When Sophie discovers an old letter left behind some 50 years before, she feels compelled to reply. Sophie’s letter inspires Claire (Vanessa Redgrave) to travel back to Italy with her grandson Charlie (Christopher Egan) to search for her long lost Italian love, and Sophie joins them on their quest.
With themes of old love, new love, Shakespearian tragedy, letter writing, and a foreign adventure, “Letters to Juliet” is deeply romantic, bordering on cheesy at times. But amongst the few eye-rolling moments, there is a sweet film with a great cast. Amanda Seyfried always brings a natural and somewhat unexpected quality to each of her roles, and she does it again with the character of Sophie.
I almost didn’t recognize former “Home and Away” star Chris (sorry I mean “Christopher”) Egan, with his extremely posh English accent he could easily pass for a Brit. Liam Hemsworth better watch out, because Chris is very charming as the stuck-up Charlie, whose stiff demeanour soon melts away. And Vanessa Redgrave is, of course, wonderful as Claire, who is nervous and excited as she follows her heart for the first time.
If you’re a hopeless romantic, dreaming of a long lost love or hoping for a new one, “Letters to Juliet” will be just what you need. Don’t forget the tissues!
