Cheap Under the Tuscan Sun (Full Screen Edition) (DVD) (Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Raoul Bova) (Audrey Wells) Price

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Customer Reviews of Under the Tuscan Sun (Full Screen Edition)

Having not read the book, I really didn't know what to expect. Let me tell you it was a pleasant surprise. For starters, Diane Lane was the perfect choice for the lead character Frances Mayes. She brings a natural reality to the character, instead of the saccharin sweet typically found in a romantic comedy. Diane instantly makes you feel like you know this woman. She's your neighbor, or someone you work with. In the scene after she learns of her husband's infidelities, she looks horrible - exactly like you'd expect like a woman would look after traumatic news. Of course Diane Lane is a very beautiful woman and as the movie progresses that becomes more and more apparent. Luckily Diane is more than just a pretty face and her performance is stellar. The movie as a whole is understated, letting things play out instead of spelling everything out and Diane provides a wonderful tapestry for you to see what is happening to her. Her reactions tell you more than pithy dialog ever could and as a result you end up taking the journey with her.

As much as I loved Diane Lane in this movie, she is surrounded by an incredible supporting cast. Sandra Oh, as the best friend, delivers an authentic performance. Instead of the typical "funny sidekick" so often played by those in the role of best friend, she's down to earth and real. Raoul Bova plays the Italian lover and should make most women weak in the knees, but I found Vincent Riotta, the real estate agent, to be a much richer character. And speaking of rich characters, Lindsay Duncan plays a wonderful eccentric as Katherine who almost serves as a fairy godmother.

Although the acting is surpurb, what brings it all together are the talents of Audrey Wells who serves as the screenplay writer, director and producer. Most of Audrey's background has been in writing. This is only her second film as a director, yet you wouldn't know it by watching the film. Clearly Ms. Wells has a love of Italy and a love of the novel and all of that shows on the screen. She filmed in the cities that are represented and she hired actors that are the nationality in which they play and the age in which they should be. The entire films shines with authenticity and coupled with wonderful performances and directing, Audrey has redefined the romantic comedy.

This movie was refreshing, witty, poetic, dramatic and rich with characters that you not only like, but identify with. It was such a breath of fresh air that I'm ready to see it again and again.

Warm, funny, sincere...................
The elements of this simple and sometimes predictable story can easily be found in any well written and dog-earred romance novel. But that's okay by me because I'm a sucker for a good romantic story, as long as I can see it take life on the silver screen and not be read from a paperback. In this exceptional case we find a story written from a obviously female point of view and it comes alive and is gloriously embraced by the warmth of the bright Tuscan sun. Painfully divorced Francis (Diane Lane) in seeking a new beginning for a shattered personal life impulsively purchases a run down villa in Tuscany. Her motivation is equal parts diversion, fantasy, and hope. She is a sophisticated American writer who finds herself amid a simple and ancient culture rooted to an old European country and in the process, Francis slowly rediscovers cherished elements about life in general and herself in particular that are the stuff of classic romance. To be honest, I am a bit biased in favor of this wonderfully crafted film populated by mostly foreign actors because as an Italian-American, I can relate to the beautiful Tuscan scenery with some ethnic pride and as a man, I absolutely adore Diane Lane. She is a naturally gifted actress with an effortless range that serves well in this sensitive and introspective film. Miss Lane's mature and stunning beauty always makes my heart go all aflutter. What can I say....her knowing characterization of sweet Francis just makes you want to hug her. Hopeless romatics will love this movie. I do however, suspect that many a guy upon taking his date to this classic "chick flick" has probably shifted around in his seat a bit and occasionally glanced at the wrist watch for some measure of redemption. No matter to me. I loved this sometimes quirky little film and have watched it more than once thanks to the modern miracle of DVD. One of last year's best film efforts. Highly recommended.

Such lovely scenery - such an awful film!
This is a really bad film. Okay, so it has nothing to do with the book except that it shares a title - that I could live with. But the story is hopelessly cobbled together and totally unbelievable. Surely this was a first draft of the script that they accidentally filmed?

The main character is played by the pretty Diane Lane, but looks alone cannot salvage this dreadful character. She cries, she pouts, she is unbearably naive and, let's just say it, she is an idiot.

The storyline is full of cliches. And where there are not cliches, there are gaping plot holes: why does her far-too-attractive-to-be-true Italian boyfriend drive a sports car when his family run a modest cafe on the beach that is supposed to support all of them? And just how does she manage to up and move to Italy without even having to fill in an immigration form? And if she was so broke that she had to move out of her mansion in San Francisco into a run-down fleabag hotel, just how the hell can she afford to suddenly buy and renovate a house in Italy, as well as living there for months with no visible means of income?

The worst part of a spectacularly awful script is the love interest suddenly written in at the very last minute to tie everything up neatly - that really is bad writing of such magnitude that it deserves a special Oscar.

Still, if you turn the sound off, you can enjoy genuinely beautiful photography of Italy.