To Rome With Love is a recipe for success!

Rating: 6/10 (21 June 2013)

After experiencing much delight watching Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, I figured I'd get much enjoyment out of To Rome With Love as well. Though I haven't actually seen that many Woody Allen movies before, from what I have experienced, I've decided that his work is both clever and hilarious. He has a knack for capturing the beauty of a city, as demonstrated in Midnight in Paris. He also cast several very notable actors in this film such as Penelope Cruz, Alec Baldwin, Ellen Page, Jesse Eisenburg and of course, himself. He was the best of all. Basically it was a recipe for success. I really liked To Rome With Love. I laughed a lot.
The movie follows the stories of several different characters in Rome, both native Romans and tourists. They vary from a confused young architect (Jesse Eisenburg) enraptured by a flighty young American actress (Ellen Page) to a sultry Italian prostitute (Penelope Cruz) who accidentally comes calling on the wrong man and thus must spend the day pretending to be his wife. All of the different plot lines were so hilarious. I think my favorite however was the one with Woody Allen himself. He is a retired music producer who upon meeting his daughter's future father-in-law, discovers that he has an amazing operatic voice and decides to put it to good use. The only catch is that the man can only sing well in the shower. Thus Woody Allen must put a portable shower on the stage that the man can bathe in while he sings. Too funny!
Whereas in Midnight in Paris, Woody Allen really capitalized on the beauty of the city, almost to an excess, in To Rome With Love, he focused on the characters and just let Rome do its thing. I definitely noticed the beauty of the ruins, sunset and the architecture etc. I didn't feel like he was trying to sell me Rome though. After watching Midnight in Paris, I had an urge to travel there, almost as if it was an hour and a half special on traveling in Paris, hosted by Owen Wilson. The beauty of Rome was subtley displayed yet very effective in this film. I hope to travel there one day.
Oh and on a final note, Penelope Cruz is gorgeous. She's pretty much THE femme fatale. The End.