When in Rome

Mark Steven Johnson's When in Rome wants me to think the protagonist, Beth is not "open to love." This movie really, really wants me to believe this. All of Beth's friends and family and even Beth seems convinced of the fact, but I wasn't.


In the very first scene, she expresses a willingness to take her ex-boyfriend back if he'd have her. (he won't) What about this woman says that she's "closed to love"? Is it the fact that she's pretty and single? Or is it the fact that she's passionate about her work as an art curator and notably talented at it? Romantic comedies never seem to like a woman who likes working. This attribute is a disorder that should be fixed because everyone knows that jobs aren't supposed to make you happy--men are. Is it because she says that she's only interested in being with a man she can love more than her job? This just seems like common sense. If I liked to work more than my boyfriend, I'd dump him too. Is it because she was skeptical about her sister marrying a man she has only known for two weeks? I don't know; I never figured it out.

The adorable Kristen Bell plays the supposedly work obsessed New Yorker, Beth. Beth is a pretty average woman--likable. I was glad she was likable. I'm pretty tired of romcoms pushing the idea that ambitious women are uptight. Although this one still doesn't seem to like ambitious women. Anyway, Beth's sister, Joan (Alexis Dziena) decides to get married in Rome to a gorgeous Italian man she had met two week previously. While in Rome, Beth meets Nick (Josh Duhamel), the best man. Nick and Beth hit it off right away. They like each other. We know it, they know it, their friends and family know it. Here we are, a mere thirty minutes into the film and Beth has proved for the SECOND time that she is open to being in a relationship. In fact, if it weren't for movie misunderstandings and magic spells, Beth could have had her man. But that wouldn't make much of a story. After getting drunk, Beth goes to the "Fountain of Love" which is supposed to grant people love if they toss a coin. I guess this is loosely based off of the Trevi Fountain--the one pictured. Instead of tossing coins, Drunk Beth steals coins and thus steals the love of five men. (funny, she didn't grab a female's coin) One of the coins is Nick's poker chip. So now she goes back to NYC to have four very eccentric men (really, what are the odds??) stalking and chasing her around the city while Nick tries to get a date. Danny DeVito plays Al, the sausage merchant. Will Arnett plays Antonio, the suffering artist who paints Beth's portrait everywhere. Jon Heder plays Lance, the dramatic street magician. And Dax Sheppard plays Gale, the narcissistic, if unsuccessful male model.

When in Rome wasn't nearly as offensive as recent romcoms have been. The male lead wasn't a jerk--slightly boring, but nice. Heh...that could describe the whole move: nice, but slightly boring. In fact, I just saw it last night and I'm already forgetting parts of it. There was of course, the usual, random slapstick humor that romcoms slip in so they can put the "com" in romcom. You know, people run into things, fall down holes in the street, make embarrassing wedding speeches. The usual. There were a few genuinely funny scenes...very few. One interesting detail I noticed was the way the shots managed to make NYC resemble Rome. I've been to both cities and I would never have thought to compare them the way the movie did. They are both beautiful cities and the film conveyed this well. Art was everywhere in the movie between Roman architecture and the art of the Guggenheim. It was a nice and unexpected detail for an otherwise throwaway popcorn flick.

Still, I don't think this movie is worth the price of a theater ticket at all, but if you're looking for a brainless romcom that only asks you to stare at pretty sites and pretty boys, than you could do worse than When in Rome. Now if you're looking for emotion, depth, humor, nuance, or art in film-making, then rent La Vita è Bella. Even better, if you want a good look at Rome, go visit. Movies can't capture that beauty.