When in Rome

Honestly this is what Rom Coms are about. Romance comedy and a thread that connects the story. It met all those expectations and more. Good A list actors hitting main and cameo parts. Romance=Rome=NYC. Comedy= the entire cast. Sit back and enjoy. Enjoy the magic and the premise that there is free will when it comes to love. Kristen Bell is as entertaining as ever. Josh Duhamal does a good job as a leading man. Dax Shephard a great character actor as always. Maybe a bit too much spark with Kristen Bell. Anjelica Huston and Danny DeVito round out the cast. Why rate it less than a B+?? Can't see why some people are rating this low on the Rom Com scale.

Wow, the reviews of this one are pretty harsh. I want to congratulate the film makers for not using profanity, sex, or violence. That in itself is refreshing and inspiring. It honors Romantic Comedies of the fifties and early sixties, which entertained without corrupting our souls.

I agree with the many reviewers who said the comedy and antics in this one were forced and didn't work, to a large extent. However, a scene in a unique restaurant was reasonably original, and one in a crowded car was somewhat cute.

Both leads were attractive and performed adequately. I don't think the roles were much of a stretch for either one, but that's o.k. They are who they are, like Doris Day and Rock Hudson were who they were. I'm sure both of these actors will do some more drama in the future.

What the film lacked was subtlety. It was so frenzied, and tried so hard to be cute, that I felt a bit edgy in my seat. I wanted to say, "Just relax and let me find out more about who these people are." Even a few more quiet scenes with heartfelt dialogue would have sufficed.

But I guess the makers were committed to a formulaic approach. The price they'll pay for that is that the movie will quickly fade from your memory. That is not necessarily such a bad thing, as it did entertain, kept clean, and left one feeling some sense of hope about love.

I prefer that to pictures that add to my cynicism.

Well, you may laugh, you may roll your eyes--you may do both simultaneously. Yes, it's a little cheesy; yes, the acting was not brilliant; yes, some of the gags seemed to repeat themselves. BUT, did I enjoy myself? Absolutely.

The humor mostly relies on a lot of physical comedy (people making blunders and bumping into things...), very little real "wit". I can't say even that the dialogue or the chemistry between the main actors was very good. But if you already know you're a sucker for romantic comedies (particularly heavily humor-laden ones, whether brilliant humor or otherwise), you will probably enjoy yourself. If you're the kind that is only rather surprised when you actually do find a romantic comedy you like, I really don't think you'll be finding it in this one.

No need to repeat the plot; the trailer says it all. And, really, with as simple a plot as it has, the trailer truly does pretty much say it ALL.

In short, it was relaxing and amusing (sometimes not the sort of amusing the director was going for, perhaps), and I enjoyed getting out of the house to go sit and catch a corny smile. Don't go if your demands or expectations are much higher.

Harmless romantic comedy with a twist: A down-on-her-romantic luck American (Bell) steals some coins out of the Fountain of Love in Rome, and the men who threw those items into that fountain all fall in love with her, and pursue the bewildered girl. She's in Rome for her kid sister's wedding where she meets and quickly falls for the charming Josh Duhamel, who looks great even if he isn't given a chance to do any real acting here. When she catches him smooching with another woman, she figures she's back where she started, romance-wise, and returns to New York. Duhamel pursues her, of course, as do the four smitten men (DiVito, Shepard, Arnett and Heder). She now has to figure out how o reverse the spell. Some funny moments, nice location photography (as far as I could tell) and the elfin Ms. Bell make it worth a watch by the gals. And there's a nice tip of the hat to THE WIZARD OF OZ near the end. A trifle at best. Don Johnson has a small role as her dad. Anjelica Houston has an even smaller role as Bell's boss.

A very predictable Rom(e)-com, that some might not even feel qualifies for the "com" tag. But that would a bit too harsh. The movie tries hard and it sometimes succeeds (imo) in achieving just that (put a smile on your face).

Kristen Bell and some of the men almost save the day. But the chemistry between her and the lead isn't really the best. It's also not the best walk on a line between comedy and romance. But still that could be called nitpicking. And why would you want to do that, if you can just sit back and enjoy this as a boyfriend/girlfriend movie experience, instead of thinking too much about it?

I think I might have overlooked a few flaws, just because of the likability of Kristen and the charm of most of the cast.