L'éloge de la liberté

I found this movie to be fun and enjoyable to just go see with the girls, but if you're looking at this movie as if was supposed to be more, you'll be disappointed. It was entertaining and fun, and I highly recommend it. Just remember that not all movies have to be intellectually stimulating, they are there to entertain you, and this one does just that.

I'm not going to say I went to this movie with any expectations, I'm not that foolish. I knew it was for 13 year old girls, and if I had to write down what the major plot points would be before I actually saw the movie, I think I would have had a pretty accurate list.

What drove me to the theater was Mandy Moore, She gave a surprising good performance in "A Walk to Remember", and you have to admire a pop princess who chooses to dye her hair brown.

Unfortunately, and I think this is more writing than Mandy's acting, her character Anna Foster is not very likable at all. She's going through the typical Disney princess "I want to see how the other side lives" phase, but her rebellion strangely includes wanting to drink as much as possible, making out with strange boys, and the need to go to the "Love Festival." A tad risque for the target audience if you ask me.

Anna's love interest, Ben (Matthew Goode) is a little more likable, and though his character succumbs to bad lines, Matthew's crooked smile and overall charisma shines through, and I hope to see him in more (and better) films.

Jeremy Piven and Annabella Sciorra play Anna's bodyguards who have to chase Anna around Europe, and oddly enough, their scenes and interactions with each other are way more entertaining and interesting than what's going on with Anna and Ben.

The highlight of the movie is the Beautiful locations of Prague, Venice, and Germany. If I got nothing else from the movie, it was probably a deepened desire to travel around Europe.

A number of people have made the obvious comparison between this movie and Roman Holiday (which is an excellent film, and one of my favorites), and I'm going to go a step farther and say this flick was like a combo of two Disney TV Movies from 1998, "My Date with the Presidents Daughter" and "Sabrina (the teenage witch) goes to Rome." One had the beautiful European scenery, and the other had, well, the Presidents daughter rebelling while dragging along a guy. The thing that makes these two movies superior to Chasing Liberty is that they were free.

I am adding my comment as I was disappointed in the only one listed, mainly because it didn't give credit to the two real actors, Mandy Moore and Mathew Goode, and to the locations used. I am not sure who Stark Sands is, and I saw the movie a couple of times. But Martin Hancock as McGruff will definitely make you smile. I was enchanted by Prague and Venice, as presented in this movie while the two actors gave credibility to the two very improbable characters. I hope we will see Mathew Goode in many more movies in US. This one is a charming light movie and the chemistry between the actors makes it a pleasure to watch. For those who love to travel or did so as youngsters, or never did but wish they could have, this is a movie to warm your hearts.

This film, it is true, requires little brainpower. It is, however, light and fun fare, particularly for teenagers. Moore is adequate but not stellar as the President's whiny daughter. My biggest complaint with the movie is that her repeated comments about wanting "freedom" get old very quickly, and she comes off as a spoiled brat, but that's more the fault of the writing, not Moore. Matthew Goode in his breakout performance is far more charming, showing off a relaxed, witty presence that make his character well worth watching (and if his performance isn't enough, his looks should be!). The sub-love-story of Moore's two bodyguards, Weiss and Morales, is also funny and at times more interesting than the lead characters themselves. The scenery easily makes up for the lack of depth. All in all, it's a cute and entertaining film and at times is outright funny. Worth watching and even buying, for times when you're not in mood for heavy drama!

"I...want to swim naked...in the Danube!" "Actually, it's the Vltava." "Who says they want to swim naked in the Vltava? Nobody says that." "That's because Vltava is Polish for 'unhealthy bacteria level'!"

Though I'm not a Mandy Moore fan, I did enjoy the movie. Matthew Goode was wonderful and really cute and HOT! Hope to see him in more movies

Jeremy Piven and Annabella Sciorra were adorable as the Secret Service agents trying to find Mandy. The premise was predictable and Mandy's acting wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. She has a decent career ahead of her.

It was a sweet movie, exactly what you'd expect it to be, but entertaining for a couple of hours.