Under The Tuscan Sun (DVD)

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You know the phrase "Pretty as a picture"? Well, "Under the Tuscan Sun" is just that, the very quintessence of a pretty picture.

The movie is frothy and light and hasn't a brain in its head, but it's so beautiful to look at and so positive and uplifting, it's hard not to like. And the production may be the ultimate "woman's film," written by a woman, directed by a woman, and starring a woman, which may turn off the machismo in a lot of guys right there; but if males stick with it and not fight it tooth and nail, they, too, may find as I did that the movie can be totally charming.

It's true, there are all sorts of morals thrown about in the film, making it sound like a "Woman's Channel" special, but they can safely be ignored. While dubious lessons about love and hope and expectations abound in the film, not putting too much stock in them is the easiest route for a viewer to take, male or female. It's best simply to forget all that stuff and just go with the film's flow of energy from its characters, locations, and cinematography. Together, they produce something quite magical, quite apart from the magnifications of the story line.

Based on the best-selling memoirs of author Frances Mayes, the movie relates the experiences of a recently divorced woman from San Francisco who moves to the region of Tuscany in west-central Italy, where she encounters new friends, new family, and a new life. But the movie is followed by a disclaimer that reads, "...the characters and events in the picture have been fictionalized for dramatic effect." Presumably, Ms. Mayes's real-life adventures weren't dramatic enough for the filmmakers, so if you've read the book, expect something different from the movie.

Diane Lane stars as Frances, and next to the beauty of the Tuscan scenery she is the movie's greatest asset. Her spirit, focus, and enthusiasm as the American writer in a new land are a sheer delight. She goes to Italy on a tour arranged by two of her best friends, but they are gay friends and the tour is gay. While that doesn't stop Frances, who's straight, a 300-year-old villa in Tuscany does. It's for sale, and she immediately follows her instincts, quits the tour, and buys the house on a whim. She says she buys it for a life she doesn't even have, but she knows she'll someday be happy again. I'm not sure where the gay tour angle was supposed to lead, but it only lasts a few minutes and disappears forever. Oh, well.

Then she and we meet her new neighbors and the workmen who remodel the old place for her and the real-estate agent who befriends her and an incredibly handsome Italian man who looks to have stepped out of the pages of "Gentleman's Quarterly," and the fantasy sets in. Everyone in Tuscany is beautiful and everyone is in love--with each other and with life. Those crazy Italians. They know how to live.

But fantasy or not, it's fun to watch; so long as you know it's little more than a series of pretty picture postcards. There are several subplots thrown in for good measure: one about Frances's lesbian best friend, Patti (Sandra Oh), who is pregnant; one about a flamboyant Italian actress, Katherine (Lindsay Duncan), who worked for Fellini and is reliving "La Dolce Vita"; and another about a pair of young lovers who are in a "Romeo and Juliet" bind. None of them go very far, but each of them adds a touch of spice to the proceedings.

Moreover, as I've said, the movie's themes are bandied about with abandon. "Always try to keep your childish innocence," remarks Katherine. Then, unexpected tragedy strikes when most expected. Be careful when you wish for things, the Wife-O-Meter advised after watching the film, and realize that things don't happen just the way you figure on them to happen. Yet, with a little faith and a whole lot of patience, good things do happen to good people. Or something like that.