Having been to Italy, I am now both entertained by the film and a believer. There are no secret agendas in this film. It is a story intended to enchant you, the audience. It is about four women (and three men) who are themselves enchanted by an April visit to a castle in Italy. I can't read Italian, but I believe the credits identify a location on the coast near Genoa.

The film was released in 1992 and I had already seen it. I enjoyed this second time, ten years later, even more than the first, primarily because the characters, the acting and the plot development were done so well with such a polish. The camera work was so good, I forgot I was watching a film and was not seeing the gorgeous scenery myself - rare for me.

Lotty drives the plot forward from the first minutes of the film because of her unhappiness with her lot (my play on words). She spots an ad for an Italian vacation at a castle whose owner is played by Michael Kitchen and the plot takes off. Kitchen is great underplaying his role as a near-sighted touring oboist.

Lotty conscripts another dissatisfied housewife, and they collect a wealthy beautiful flapper and an aging malcontent, the latter part played to perfection by Joan Plowright (I found out later that she is the widow of Lawrence Olivier). The unlikely quartet arrives in Italy and the rest is comedy, serendipity, humanity and some unexpected outcomes.

A story about four women, romance in Italy and scenes full of flowers, plants and trees and a happy ending qualifies this as a "chic-flick". But I think a film that explores the dissatisfactions of life, the impact of making a change, the difference in the emotional landscape for men and women and does this with grace and comedy and believability is more than just a "chick-flick". See for yourself.

2002-12-09