“You, Me and Tuscany” may be structured like a Hallmark movie, but there are enough tweaks to make it worth a lazy Thursday night visit.
Halle Bailey stars as Anna, a house sitter who meets an Italian at a restaurant in New York, discovers he has a villa back home and nonchalantly lands an invitation to visit.
Unemployed, she takes the offer to heart and heads to Italy. When she gets to his hometown, she discovers there’s a festival that has made hotel space scarce. She goes to Matteo’s home, unearths the key and spends the night. When she finds an engagement ring in one of his drawers, she puts it on and, before she can put it back, runs into his mother, who assumes she’s Matteo’s fiancée.
Rather than confess, the interloper plays the role and is welcomed into his family. Among the relatives: a hunky winemaker (Rege-Jean Page), who’s Matteo’s cousin/brother. You can see where this is headed (and maybe where it’s ending), but Italy is packed with scene stealers who make the budding relationship an afterthought. Stella Pecollo as sister Francesca is so fun – and surprising – you want her to be the film’s centerpiece.
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Bailey and Page don’t waste the time they’re given, but they also need outsiders to fill in the personality blanks. When he’s shirtless in a vineyard, a tour group takes in the view and offers the kind of ad libs that make this fun. Director Kat Coiro lavishes plenty of time on the food and scenery and lets various family members fall into stereotypes before Matteo (Lorenzo De Moor) shows up and sets things straight.
While “You, Me and Tuscany” isn’t as hearty as a loaf of bread or a juicy as a ripe tomato, it does have the ability to divert from negative news and increasing war drumbeats.
While Anna could be guilty of breaking and entering, theft and fraud, she plays it cool and gets support when Matteo turns up.
The plot twists are enough to keep you interested between kernels of popcorn and sips of soda. “You, Me and Tuscany,” however, isn’t going to fill your tank for quality drama.
It’s a harmless rom-com that will make you long for a trip to Italy, with or without an invite.
