Toscana

This film is an odd duck. The colours are Italian. The scenery is Italian. The feeling is.. definitely not Italian. In a way, it's like Theo... awkwardly trying to process and integrate into a scenery and culture that is not their own and that they struggle to understand.

Yes, the change is way too rushed. The romance feels forced. But this is a man who has lost a father twice. Perhaps its odd tone reflects the inner turmoil Theo has to deal with before he finds his centre.

Could be a good remake of A Good Year if the writers filled the loopholes in the script. Where's Toscana? Do you know where Parmigiano Reggiano is produced? How come a famous chef could be unaware of what's going on in Italy and its depth of gastronomy? Why do you need a fast paced love story? Exaggerated father issues of the protagonist etc.

This multilingual film doesn't deliver on its promise. The story is supposed to be full of drama but the actors don't quite capture it even if they tried. They simply don't rise to the occasion.

The saving grace? Idyllic Tuscan countryside which is a feast for the eyes rendered in soft palette.

As the opening credits eventually rolled, I was expecting a variation on the 'Love is all you need' theme, especially when Zeuten turned out to be the actor who played the son in that charming film, but this story just didn't hang together. The central romantic story of Theo and Sophia was implausible, and devoid of any believable chemistry between the actors. There were too many contrived moments, when one quietly thought 'yeah, right....you're kidding me', and occasional allusions to some past relationship problem with the chef's father, never made tangible or clear, It's a pity, with the beauty of the setting, and a potentially appealing cast. Promising ingredients, poorly assembled. Disappointing.

I liked three things about this movie: the food; the gorgeous landscapes of Toscana; and Cristiana dell'Anna, who was so memorable in Gomorra, and who still managed to tug at my heart in this venture. Unfortunately the script fell far short of the photography and the cast, and that ruined things for me.

There are no surprises after the first 15 minutes. If you've ever seen a movie about a chef, or any rom-com whatsoever, you know what's coming next.

A better story and more plausible characters would have helped a lot, but as written, neither Theo nor Sophia made any sense to me. I hope Cristiana dell'Anna gets better parts in better movies very soon!