‘Letters to Juliet’
Director: Gary Winick
Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Christopher Egan, Vanessa Redgrave, Franco Nero
Rating: PG
Grade: ?????
In “Letter’s to Juliet,” Amanda Seyfried stars as an aspiring writer, Sophie, who is taking a trip to Verona, Italy, with her irritating fiance, Victor (Gael Garcia Bernal). Sophie finds a shrine to Juliet of “Romeo & Juliet” and answers a letter left by Claire, an English teenager in 1957. Claire (Vanessa Redgrave) arrives in Verona in hopes of being reunited with her lost lover. Her handsome grandson Charlie (Chris Egan) is there to hand out reality checks, and against all common sense, the trio embarks on a cross-country search for a lost lover.
The film is straight eye candy, shot in Tuscany. But a few clunky lines that don’t belong break the intended spell with a thud. There are resonant moments of emotional awakening that bring a tear to the eye, but predictability kills the dramatic tension.
