You, Me & Tuscany review: Beautiful visuals, ridiculous story
I am all for a pleasant romantic comedy starring beautiful people in a gorgeous location, but even You, Me & Tuscany tested my goodwill.
The film stars Halle Bailey as Anna, a culinary school dropout now working as a professional house sitter in New York. One night, she meets an Italian man named Matteo (Lorenzo de Moor) at a hotel bar and learns all about his life, including his Tuscan villa that is currently sitting vacant. Desperate for some excitement in her life, Anna flies to Italy and squats in his villa! A case of mistaken identity ensues, which is complicated by her feelings for Matteo’s British-born cousin Michael (Regé-Jean Page).
There are narrative turns in this that are very hard to swallow. There are many plot holes, Italian stereotypes and clichés, and the mistaken identity plot goes way too far and its resolution is ridiculous. I love a romcom, and I want them to make a real comeback, but this feels too unrealistic, contrived and silly. There are so many unbelievable things that occur, like Matteo’s family just accepting Anna’s story, and I had to chuckle sometimes, like when Page takes his top off for no good reason!
The writing is patchy at best. Besides the broader narrative strokes, the comedy is hit and miss. However, some of the hits were legit gems that made me laugh. I actually ended up laughing a fair bit – sometimes with the film and sometimes at it. I particularly enjoyed Matteo’s over-sharing sister Francesca (Stella Pecollo) and Anna’s taxi driver-turned-confidante Lorenzo (Marco Calvani). Yes, they are Italian stereotypes, but they are so funny. Also, the people on the vineyard tour are hilarious, and Anna’s best friend Claire (Aziza Scott) has some cracking one-liners.
It’s rare to see a studio romcom starring two Black leads, so this representation is fantastic. But Bailey and Page deserved better than this. In particular, Bailey is so sweet, charming and glowing, but she is given a character who makes very questionable decisions and lives an egregious lie. It’s hard to root for her. Meanwhile, Page ticks all the right boxes – he is handsome and smoulders well, something we’ve witnessed before in Bridgerton. There are some longing glances, but their chemistry wasn’t exactly sizzling.
However, I reckon most people will be able to cast these issues aside and enjoy the Tuscan fantasy world in this charming, throwback romcom. The food! The landscapes! Take me to Italy, pronto!
In cinemas from Friday 10th April